


Dragon Season: A Moment in Time

by Akiko_Natsuko



Series: Dragon Season [3]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Character Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship/Love, Grief/Mourning, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mating Bond, Revenge, Team as Family, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-30
Updated: 2019-05-24
Packaged: 2019-09-30 13:40:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17225084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akiko_Natsuko/pseuds/Akiko_Natsuko
Summary: 'Dragons and their children only have one mate in their life, and if the chosen mate rejects them then they will spend their entire life alone.'That one moment in the battle with the Dragons has a deeper effect on Natsu than anyone ever expected.Part of the Dragon Season storyline.





	1. Chapter 1

     Gray was breathing heavily, the numbers of minions never seeming to decrease no matter how many they downed, and he was distantly aware of the devastation being wrought by the larger Dragons that were being fought throughout the city. _That Natsu was fighting._ He had heard his mate’s words, and even though he wasn’t a Dragon-slayer, he had felt a shiver down his spine as Natsu had rallied them. It hadn’t stopped him from worrying them, a creeping concern that only grew the longer this battle continued, because it was one thing to know that Natsu had Dragon-slaying magic, but it was another to know that he was out there using it for that purpose. _Just don’t do anything reckless, Flamebrain,_ he thought, careful not to let it slip through the bond, for fear that it might distract Natsu.

   Hearing movement behind him, he spun, ice glistening around his hands, as he drove a lance through the creature that had been trying to get the drop on him. He wasted no time on it, already moving onto the next one when he heard Lyon shouting behind him.

“JUVIA!” He whirled towards the sound, hearing the panic…no, the utter terror in the other Ice Mage’s voice, and it took him all of a second to realise why his eyes widening as he spied the creature that had just fired its laser directly at Juvia. She had frozen, fear locking her in place, and her face was a mask of terror as she stared at the rapidly approaching blast. There was a tiny voice in the back of his head, the one that had just warned Natsu not to be reckless that was screaming at it, but he paid it no mind, not stopping to think about what he was doing.

    It felt to him that his body had moved before he’d even fully realised what was happening. The world narrowing down to the distance between them, and his outstretched hand, and it was only when his fingers connected with her, shoving her out of the way that time seemed to catch up with himself. He had a split second of relief as she began to fall with a startled cry. _She’s safe._ That thought had barely registered before it was wiped away as his body was gripped by all-encompassing pain as the blast struck him, striking him directly in the chest. He wasn’t sure if he’d cried out, it felt like nothing was working as he began to fall, the world around him already beginning to darken, and seconds later what little breath he’d had left was forced from his lungs as another volley of blasts collided with him and this time he screamed.

   Somewhere in the midst of the agony and the shadows that were stealing away both breath and thought, he felt a warm presence brushing the back of his mind. Even with everything failing him, he recognised Natsu’s touch, and tears prickled in the corners of his eyes as he felt his mate frantically reaching out, trying to encompass him in his warmth and share his strength. Trying to save him even now, and it hurt…a deep, aching pain that was worse than the agony lancing through his body because he knew that there was no saving him from this. _I’m so sorry Natsu._ With the last dredges of strength that he possessed he reached out, desperately trying to let Natsu know how much he loved him, and how much he wanted to stay, only to feel himself being engulfed in the overwhelming wave of raw grief and fury that poured through the bond from the other end.

_Natsu…_

_I’m sorry._

 He was lost, caught up in the metal scream as it washed over him, and he was distantly aware that Natsu’s cry had broken through into the physical world just before he was finally swept away as a final blast struck his head. In an instant he was gone, oblivious to how his body landed with a dull thud on the ground. Unable to hear the anguished scream that tore itself free of Juvia’s throat as she realised what had happened, and blind to the way that Lyon had collapsed, falling to his knees with a broken noise as Meredy stood weeping behind him.

****

    Natsu’s senses were being assaulted from all directions. Behind him, he could feel the warmth coming from Atlas Flame, but while the heat would have been overwhelming for most people, for him, it was nostalgic, as though he had a little bit of Igneel back with him. It bolstered him more than he cared to admit. Then there was his assailant’s scent – so similar to Rogue’s that a small part of him wanted to hesitate, and he had to keep himself focused on the other Dragon-slayer’s face so that he didn’t falter, lips curling at the words the other man was still shouting as they traded blows. The lies – or truths that he didn’t want or need to hear. The future he wouldn’t…couldn’t allow to come true. 

    It was overwhelming, and it wasn’t helped by the fear that had been needling at him ever since the Dragons had first appeared over crocus. His inner dragon nervous at the presence of so many enemies – so many Dragons – so close to his mate, and it didn’t help that he knew that Gray was out there fighting somewhere in the city. Especially, as he had no idea who Gray was with, or just how bad the situation was on the ground. The need to know, to go and find him and make sure that he was okay, was almost overwhelming at this point, and it was only the fact that he could feel the distant hum of his mate’s presence in the back of his mind that was stopping him from giving in to the urge. But it wasn’t enough to prevent him from worrying.

    Growling. Using his worry, to fuel his anger, he dodged out of the way of a blow that threatened to knock him out of the air, before retaliating with a flaming elbow, forcing Future Rogue to stumble backwards. He didn’t get chance to capitalise on it though, as they both staggered a second later as Atlas Flame seized the opportunity to slam himself bodily into Motherglare once more, both Dragons snarling as they fought to gain the upper hand. Part of Natsu was fascinated by the sight because in all the time that he had spent with Igneel he had never had the chance to witness a Dragon going all out like these two were. Mainly because his father had been unwilling to use such force against a human child and had shielded him on the few occasions, they’d run into trouble.

    However, as a fist ablaze with tainted holy light swept past his cheek a little too close for comfort, only missing due to the unpredictable movement of the Dragons beneath them, Natsu forced himself to focus once more. He couldn’t afford to be distracted now. He needed to finish this fight so that he could get to his mate as soon as possible, needing to protect him. While the promise he had made to Lucy was a constant echo in the back of his mind. Clinging to those fought he growled as he lashed out, sending the other Dragon-slayer skidding backwards across rough scales, and he felt a brief flicker of satisfaction as he saw a hint of shock in the dark eyes. Baring his teeth in a fierce grin he moved forward with a single-minded focus, he would teach the other man not to underestimate him, even he had almost been taken out earlier.

*

   He was just bracing himself to lunge forward when all thoughts of the battle and his promise to Lucy vanished as the bond between him and Gray came alive with a terrifying sense of wrongness. It was a sickening sensation, and he staggered, eyes narrowing as he caught the fear and horror that was now coming off his mate in waves. However, before he could even try and determine what was happening to make Gray feel like that, he was struck by a wave of pain so intense that it sent him crashing to his knees. His vision blurred, eyes watering as he tried to ride it out, frantically reaching out through the bond as he felt Gray crying out in pain. He was blind and deaf to the world around him as he reached out, trying to wrap his mate up in his warmth, desperately trying to lend strength to his mate as he felt Gray faltering.

_It’s not enough._

    Gray was wavering, faltering, and seconds later another wave of pain surged through the bond. Only this went beyond mere pain. It was agony, igniting every nerve in Natsu’s body even though he was only getting an echo of it, and he was unable to stop himself from crying out, flames flickering around him as he screamed. However, even that was nothing compared to the realisation that the bond between him and Gray was beginning to disintegrate, slowly fading away into a cloud of shadow, and something sharp and brittle shattered in his chest. _No._

“Gray…” He mumbled, shaking as he tried desperately to keep the bond open, to anchor Gray to life, but he could feel the Ice mage slipping away with him. He was vaguely aware of the weak flicker in the bond as Gray tried to reach back, flinching away from the feelings, the desperate message of love…the apology that he could feel coming from his mate, refusing to accept that this was happening.

 Unable to accept the thought of losing his mate.

     Then the bond quivered, another wave of pain surging along its length, undimmed despite it’s weakening state and Natsu bit down hard on his lip to hold back the cry fighting to escape. He was oblivious to the blood trickling down his chin, and the coppery taste filling his mouth as with an almost audible snap, the link between him and Gray vanished.

    For a long moment, he was frozen, numb with shock, unable to think let alone attempt to comprehend what the sudden emptiness in the back of his mind meant. Utterly helpless against the dark void that had opened inside him and threatening to devour him. However, slowly, from amidst the growing darkness, a single thought began to take shape. He shied away from it, unable to bear the truth it contained, but he couldn’t hide from it, and a solitary tear escaped, marking the start of the flood as it tore through his weak defences.

Gray…is gone.

Gray is gone.

    The words were like a knife, tearing and slashing their way deeper inside, and as the realisation sank into his shocked mind, something welled up from deep inside of him. Something, sharp and painful. Something that burned in his chest, and with an anguished cry he fell forward, barely managing to catch himself with clenched fists as tears streaked down his cheeks. He was so lost in his grief and rising fury that he didn’t realise that the cry was still going, swelling and rising as it tore itself free of bloody lips. Oblivious to the magic imbuing the sound as his draconic side flare, amplifying the cry until it filled the air above the city, stopping everyone and everything in their tracks as it rocked them to their core.

_Gray._

_Is._

_Gone._

****

    For the civilians that hadn’t managed to escape before the devastation had left them trapped in the chaos, and the normal mages fighting to hold back the smaller creatures, the sound was unnerving. It drew all eyes skywards despite the numerous battles raging around them and made everyone’s hair stand on end. It was only those in Fairy Tail, and those familiar with Natsu, who recognised the source of the cry, even though they didn’t understand what was happening…or what had happened to make the Salamander sound like that.

    On the far side of the city, Lucy was drawn from her perusal of the diary left by her future-self, tears springing unbidden to her eyes as Natsu’s voice washed over her and she stumbled for a moment as she realised that something terrible must have happened to make him sound like that. Part of him had snapped when her future-self had died, his grief palpable, but even then, he hadn’t seemed so wounded. So broken. Her eyes widened, a chill washing over her, as she realised that there was only one thing in the world that could’ve made him sound like, the diary falling from suddenly nerveless fingers, as a choked sob broke free. _Gray._

  Elsewhere, both Erza and Jellal had frozen mid-fight as Natsu’s cry had washed over them, potent enough to bring tears to their eyes, and their eyes met for a fraction of a second as they registered the sheer sorrow in the sound. Then they were moving, resuming the fight without a word, sliding around one another with ease, as though they had fought together a hundred times before. There was no holding back, an edge of ferocity to their attacks that had been missing before as they tried to clear a path back towards the others. They both knew that whatever had happened to make Natsu sound like that had to be bad, and even without words, Jellal could see the desperate need in Erza’s eyes as she glanced towards where they had last seen her guild. She needed to be with them, to find out what was happening, and as gold light spilled out around him, he vowed to make sure that she got there.

    Makarov had frozen as the cry reached him, a giant hand slowly crushing the creature he had trapped a moment before as he turned his gaze skywards. He recognised Natsu’s voice, and his expression darkened as he immediately realised what such a cry indicated, knowing that there was only one thing that could leave Natsu in such a state. His heart seemed to skip a beat, and for a moment the world seemed to grow dark and cold around them. It had always been a distinct possibility that the would lose someone in this battle, especially after seeing what they were faced with, but to be faced with that loss… to be facing the loss of one of his brats… He found himself fighting to keep his feet, and his heart went out to the grieving Dragon-slayer as the anguished cry continued to echo through the city.

**

   It was different for the other Dragon-slayers who were still scattered throughout the city. The anguished cry carrying a deeper, more personal meaning as it reverberated through them, waking instincts that most of them had been unaware of, as their inner Dragons roused in response to the grieving cry.

“What the hell is that?” Bickslow demanded, seizing the opportunity to put some distance between himself and the Dragon they were facing who had frozen at the echoing cry, fighting the urge to clasp both hands over his ears as he fell back to the others. Falling quiet as he saw the concern in their eyes, their gazes locked on Laxus and when he followed their gaze Bickslow could see why. The Dragon-slayer had gone utterly still, eyes wild as he stared up at the sky, lightning flickering around his hands as they curled into fists at his side, and they all jumped a moment later when a low, ferocious growl rumbled through him.

 “Laxus?” Freed was the one to break the nervous silence, cautiously taking a few steps towards Laxus, only to flinch back when lightning struck the ground in front of him. Another bolt struck off to the left, and he realised that while he wasn’t being targeted, it wasn’t safe right now and he immediately retreated, and they could all feel the magic that was now saturating the air around them as Laxus tensed.

      Behind them, Wendy had reacted slower, but tears were beginning to trickle down her suddenly pale cheeks, as she glanced skywards.

“Natsu…” She whispered, feeling his grief as though it was part of her, and her eyes widened as she felt her draconic side which before had never been more than a quiet murmur in the back of her mind, beginning to stir in reaction to Natsu’s cry. It was overwhelming, and she staggered, breath catching in her chest as fury, and a thirst for retribution that was entirely separate from her own emotions surged up. It was too much. As though she was being pulled in two different directions, and she was relieved when Mira moved up behind her, wrapping an arm around her.

“Wendy what’s going on?” Mira demanded anxiously, her grip tightening as she felt the younger girl beginning to shake. “Is that really Natsu?” She added, shivering as the anguished cry seemed to reach into every corner of her body, and Wendy tensed, going utterly still her grip before turning to look up at her and this time Mira was the one who tensed. Trying not to flinch away from the feral glint that had entered Wendy’s eyes, contrasting with the tears on her cheeks, and so far from her normal demeanour that Mira found herself loosening her grip. “Wendy?” She asked in alarm, fighting the urge to back away especially when a low growl escaped the younger girl.

“It’s Natsu…” Wendy whispered with a tiny nod, before sniffling and reaching up to dash at the tears falling down her cheeks. “It’s Gray…” She added, clinging desperately to her self-control, feeling her draconic side fighting against her and knowing that she wouldn’t be able to hold it back for much longer. “He’s gone…Gray is gone.” Mira’s arm fell away at those words, her own eyes beginning to burn fiercely as she realised what Wendy was saying, the realisation that they had all lost a friend starting to set in before her eyes slowly widened as the meaning behind the deafening cry registered.

“Wendy,” Laxus snarled, interrupting them. “We’re going to end this.” His voice was barely human now as it cut across Natsu’s cry, and the sound of the battle as he turned his attention back to the Dragon who was moving once, watching them all with mocking gaze of someone confident of their victory. Deep down, he realised on an instinctual level that the creature should have reacted to the cry the same way that they had, and the fact that he hadn’t indicated that whatever was controlling them was too strong, and that knowledge only added to his building fury. “Now.”

“Yes,” Wendy agreed simply, stepping forward and out of the reach of Mira’s arm as the older girl tried to stop her, moving up to stand next to Laxus. Her eyes glinting with amber fire as her power welled up around her until there was a wild wind whipping around all of them, adding to the uncomfortable pressure that was Laxus’ magic lingering in the air. Realising that neither of them was going to back down and that the Dragon-slayers were in no state to heed their presence, the others backed away, tense and fearful and aching as Natsu’s voice echoed over the city.

**

    Gajeel was in the middle of launching another attack, desperately trying to wear down his opponent when he froze as Natsu’s cry rang through the air. It washed through him, igniting his draconic side as he dropped to the ground, and he let it surge to the forefront of his mind now, unable and unwilling to stop it from responding to Natsu’s lost, letting loose a snarl that stopped the Dragon in its track. He was barely aware that it had stopped though, his head having automatically turned in the direction of Natsu’s cry, even as he frantically reached out through his own bond to check that Levy was still relatively safe. Despite the fear he could feel vibrating through the bond when their minds brushed, he could tell that she was alive, and from the feeling, she sent him, also safe, and that was enough to let him pull away before he could get lost in the sensation.

“Salamander,” he breathed, as he refocused on Natsu’s cry. It reverberated through him, a bone-deep ache that left him barely able to breathe, even as he turned narrowed eyes on his opponent. Every draconic instinct within him was screaming at him, telling him to take down the Dragon looming over him. To take down anything and everything that Natsu perceived as having played a role in his mate’s death, and yet his human side was still hesitating, reluctant to accept the death of a friend…of a family member, without seeing with his own eyes that Gray had fallen.

    However, his human rationality was swept aside seconds later as his draconic side forced itself back to the surface with a vicious snarl. It needed no further confirmation. Natsu’s mourning cry telling it everything that it needed to know, and with a howl that rose to join Natsu’s voice, he lunged forward to attack once more. Skin giving way to dark metal, as he lost himself in the battle and the need to avenge Natsu and his fallen mate.

**

   Streets away, Sting and Rogue both froze as the heart-wrenching cry reached them, neither of them understanding the reason behind it. Yet, their draconic sides didn’t need to understand, reacting to it on some base, instinctual level. For a brief second their eyes met, and both could see the flicker of amber that had appeared in the other’s eyes, and then they were moving again, whirling around as their magic flare wildly around them.

“Natsu,” Sting growled, recognising the voice if not the reasoning behind it, his weariness dropping away as he shifted back into Dragon-force with a vicious snarl. His heart was aching in response to the sorrow that was being conveyed in the echoing cry, and he was consumed by the need to do something, anything, to help relieve that grief even if he didn’t understand. Some distant part of him realising that nothing he and Rogue did could ease that pain. Beside him, Rogue mirrored him, moving in perfect sync with him, as shadows wreathed him, and in perfect unison they lunged forwards, their opponents falling back in the face of the unexpected ferocity they were suddenly facing.

**

    Cobra hissed as the cry reached him, striking his overly sensitive ears and he was unable to prevent himself from reaching up to cover them in an attempt to block out the noise and ride out the pain. His eyes were watering as he staggered, struggling to keep at least half his attention on his opponent.

    However, for several long seconds, his attention was consumed by the pain, and it took him a while to realise that something else was rising in his chest. Something wild, that was overthrowing the determination that had filled him earlier when he had heard Natsu’s words and realised that the Salamander truly trusted him enough to join in with this battle. He knew that the sorrow and sudden fury that followed was coming from something beyond himself, just as he could feel the draconic magic rising in his body, but he made no effort to fight either of them. Instead, he forced himself to brush through the pain, although he couldn’t prevent the soft moan that escaped as he straightened, turning his attention back to his opponent. “I will win,” he growled, not with the bravado that he had felt at the start of the battle but with quiet determination as his magic saturated the air around him, ignoring the alarmed cries of the mages fighting nearby and their frantic scramble to back away.

**

   Atlas Flame had faltered, breaking off from his next attack when the aching, broken cry had broken free from Igneel’s child, his flames dimming as he’d realised that not only had the Dragon-slayer mated, but that same mate had met his end somewhere within this battle. A keening noise built up in his chest, as he shared Natsu’s grief, but it was tinged with guilt as he realised that he too had played an unforgivable role in the fight before Natsu had managed to break through the control that Motherglare’s rider had over him. However, both feelings were rapidly being drowned out by a burning fury that was rising in response to Natsu’s cry, every instinct that he possessed now screaming at him to help the child avenge his mate.

    Turning his burning gaze on Motherglare, he realised that apart from the faint tremor that he had felt before they had broken apart the other Dragon hadn’t responded to the anguished noise. And as their gazes met for a second, he was stunned to see that there was no hint of the same instincts that were currently flooding him. Was the other Dragon-slayer’s controlling magic really so powerful that it could even override their most basic instincts? Their entire species shared the burden of protecting the bond between mates – it was why any Dragon that endangered or took the life of another’s mate was subject to Dragon Law, and why his instincts were currently howling for him to assist in avenging the loss of Natsu’s mate. Yet it was clear that Motherglare shared none of this, and he bellowed his fury to the world at that realisation.

****

   Natsu was oblivious to the various reactions he had triggered throughout the city, and even if he had been aware of it, then he wouldn’t have cared at that moment. His entire being was consumed by the realisation that he had failed to protect Gray, that he had failed in his duty to his mate, and the gnawing, aching understanding that he was now alone. _Gone. He’s gone…_ There was a dark void in the space where his heart had been, and an emptiness in the back of his mind that drove home that loss and he could feel that darkness calling to him, offering him a way out of a world without his mate. He was clutching at his chest now, clawing at it as he wished that he could rip out his heart to stop the pain that was tearing him apart from the inside, unaware that he was actually digging bloody furrows into his skin in his efforts to escape the pain.

_Gone! Our mate is gone!_

_Kill them…kill...kill…._

    His draconic side was writhing and thrashing in the throes of its grief, shrieking its fury into his mind, and as he felt the already tenuous barrier between them beginning to crumble, he let it fall, willingly surrendering to his wilder half.

     As the barrier shimmered and fell, failing completely, the anguished cry finally faded away as Natsu retreated into the furthest corner of his mind as his draconic side consumed him entirely. It's release bringing with it a wave of raw power that washed through him, physically changing his body as it went, skin giving way to crimson as it hardened into scales that this time covered most of his body. While warm olive, darkened into molten amber, alight with pain and fury as he turned his attention back to the cause of his pain, flames exploding around with, with no semblance of his usual control.

_Kill._

*

“What trick is this Natsu Dragneel?” Future-Rogue demanded as he straightened, wincing as he tried to recover from the combined effects of the deafening cry, and the explosion of flames seconds before that had forced him backwards, nearly sending him off the back of Motherglare. As he steadied himself, he realised that his control of the remaining Dragons was wavering slightly, and it took him a second to realise that it was because of the strange, previously unknown instinct that was now rising in his chest, howling at him. It startled him to realise that it was torn, longing to avenge the sorrow that had been conveyed in that cry, the pain that had been caused, but also fearful that the enraged Dragon-slayer was going to focus on them in his search for retribution.

_Enough._

    Snarling, he buried the unwanted feelings, focusing on shoring up his hold over the other Dragons, noting that they were fighting him now, an echo of the same instincts that had threatened to overwhelm him coming from each of them in turn. It took far more effort that he was willing to admit forcing them to submit once more, and he was unsure how long it would last now, an angry growl on his lips as he turned his attention back to Natsu. Wondering just what the other Dragon-slayer had done to unsettle them to that extent, irritation building as he realised that Natsu hadn’t even replied to his earlier question.

    However, as soon as his gaze landed on his opponent, he found his throat closing up as a sudden jolt of fear went through him, as he found himself staring directly into feral, amber eyes. Unable to stop himself, he took a cautious step back as the fury and hatred churning in the wild gaze registered, the movement drawing a rumbling growl from Natsu as the other Dragon-slayer slowly climbed back to his feet, the flames around him dancing wildly.

    It was the silence that worried him though, his eyes narrowing as Natsu made no attempt to launch into his usual challenges or determined threats, a mocking noise rising in his throat as he realised that the other Dragon-slayer was weeping, tears running unchecked down scaled cheeks. However, he quickly quietened when Natsu’s only response to the noise was a low snarl, and he found himself tensing as he studied him properly for the first time. _What the hell is going on?_ There was no way that the other Dragon-slayer could have changed so much in the space of a minute, and yet the power now filling the air around them was completely different, and he frowned. “Is this…Dragon-force?” He asked under his breath, noting with interest the crimson scales that now covered most of Natsu’s visible skin. Even in the future, years after these games, Natsu’s use of Dragon-force hadn’t developed to this extent, with the scales only covering parts of his face and upper arms when he was at full strength.

    The sudden, and apparently vast difference that had suddenly appeared between them unnerved him more than the unexplainable emotions that Natsu’s cry had triggered, and for the first time, he found himself entertaining the possibility that his plan might fail.

“Because of you…” Natsu finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper and in a tone that would have been inhuman were it now for the raw pain behind the words. It was quiet, but to Future-Rogue it sounded deafening as he found himself unable to look away from the amber gaze that was now studying his every move and he shivered at the echo he could hear in the other’s voice, as though there was more than Natsu speaking right now. “Because of you,” Natsu repeated as the wild flames surrounding him began to shift, slowly gathering around his fists as he slipped into a low crouch, his teeth bared in a grim snarl and Future-Rogue instinctively gathered his own magic in preparation as Natsu’s face contorted in rage. “My mate is dead because of you!”

    Grief and guilt outweighed the anger in that final, anguished shout, but he had no time to consider what that meant as Natsu immediately moved, a flaming fist heading directly for his face. Only a desperate twist to the side saved him, but there was no reprieve as Natsu followed up with another blow, and then another and another. There was nothing controlled or predictable about these attacks, and Future-Rogue found himself unable to do anything but retreat under the onslaught, even as he tried to work out what had happened, struggling to comprehend the change in his opponent. However, he found himself with little time to think, as Natsu was relentless now, and moments later he was nearly flung from Motherglare’s back as Atlas Flame re-joined the battle with a thunderous roar, and as he struggled to hold his balance and stave off the furious Dragon-slayer, he felt a flicker of doubt.

_Can I really win this?_


	2. Chapter 2

 

_Kill._

_Kill the one that took our mate._

     It was a mantra in the back of his mind, the only thing penetrating the darkness that had taken hold of him, the only shred of conscious thought amidst the rage. There was a tiny part of him. A lingering trace of the human ‘Natsu’ that knew this wasn’t what Gray would have wanted from him, that it wasn’t what Fairy Tail did, but those whispers, those doubts, were like a candle flame in a storm, there one second and extinguished the next as his draconic side surged forth once more.

     Pain. Physical pain, lanced through him, tracing a long arc up his side and Natsu snarled as he was forced back several steps, paying no attention to the ragged wound that now ran the length of his side, slowly oozing blood as he struggled to keep his feet. Everything was screaming at him to finish the Dragon-slayer in front of him, to tear him apart for the part he had played in Gray’s death, and yet it seemed that no matter what he did, or how hard he tried, he was unable to gain the upper hand for more than a few seconds at a time. It was infuriating, and he howled his fury aloud as he slowly straightened, blocking out the pain that blossomed with that movement, burning amber eyes fixated on his opponent.

_Kill._

“What is giving you this strength?” Future-Rogue demanded, seizing the opportunity to try and catch his breath, eyes locked on Natsu as the other Dragon-slayer rallied himself. Taking a deep breath, he tried to take inventory of his injuries, wincing as even shifting from foot to foot reminded him of how much damage he had taken, clothes chafing against burnt skin and as his tongue flicked out, he could taste copper on his lips. This was a side of Natsu that he had never seen before, and he couldn’t understand where it had come from. After Natsu had used his lightning attack against him in the Palace, he had been sure that he had seen everything that the other mage had to draw on, and yet this. Whatever this was, was far stronger than that attack had been, and it had caught him off guard, and he wasn’t sure how long he was going to be able to hold out against it.

“I told you.” Natsu ground out, having apparently recovered from the last attack as he launched himself forward with a burst of flames, lashing out with blazing fists, and forcing Future-Rogue to dance out of reach once more. Pain distorting his expression, as he felt his skin beginning to blister as the flames brushed too close for comfort, and he was a second to slow to dodge the next blow, his head ringing as Natsu’s fist caught his temple although thankfully without flames this time. “My mate is dead because of you.” Natsu’s voice had lost none of its fury or viciousness, but he was unable to keep the anguish off his face, and the wild flames around him faltered for a second, dimming just enough to give Future-Rogue a chance to retaliate.

     Shadows stretched out around him, forcing Natsu to back up, and the bolts of holy light that shot through the darkness a later caught the other Dragon—slayer off guard. “Mate?” He questioned, putting a bit more distance between, noting with satisfaction the pained noise, as several of the bolts hit home, opening fresh wounds on the scaled arms.

“G-Gray…” Natsu whispered, voice breaking, and there was a world of pain in that word. He faltered as the devastation of his loss washed over him once more, making a noise that was halfway between a whimper and a sob as he tried to grasp his anger once more. It was easier to lose himself in the burning fury than to let himself feel anything else, especially now, because he couldn’t afford to falter here.

“The Ice-mage?” Future-Rogue demanded, eyeing Natsu’s flickering expression with caution and taking a wary step forward, even as he cast his mind back to what he knew of the Fairy Tail wizards, bile rising at the thought of the Ice Mage. Back in this time, he hadn’t known much about Gray Fullbuster, just what he had been able to glean from watching him fight during the games…of course, since then he had learned more. _Too much more,_ but he couldn’t see what any of that had to do with the battle they were having right now. “What does Gray Fullbuster have to do anything?” He hadn’t been able to keep the fury, the hate out of his voice, and he realised that had been a mistake when the flames around Natsu recovered, leaping higher than ever as amber eyes narrowed once more.

“DON’T YOU SAY HIS NAME!” Natsu roared, the sound of his mate’s name coming from this man’s lips, and in that tone, effectively reigniting his fury and with no care for his injuries he lunged forwards one more. Future-Rogue was unable to do anything but desperately give ground, as the flames threatened to engulf him, burning hotter than ever, and yet even as he flung up shadows to try and cover his retreat, he was still no closer to understanding what was happening.

****

    On the far side of the city, oblivious to the drama that was unfolding everywhere else in the city, Ultear knelt amongst the ruins. She had heard Natsu’s mournful cry, but it had not really registered, the meaning lost to her as she was lost in her own pain and regrets, and with tears on her cheeks, she initiated the one spell that she’d never had the strength to use before. The only spell that she had left that might make a difference that might make amends for everything that she had done…or failed to do in the past.

_Please, just this once, let me make a difference._

_Please._

 “Arc of Time…Last Ages!” Ultear cried, the words seeming to echo as her magic surged forth in a flare of blinding, azure light. There was a fleeting second, buoyed by the feel of her magic, and the warmth of it as it danced against her skin when she almost smiled…but then the pain hit, and she was writhing, shrieking her agony to the skies as the spell began to exact its cost, tearing through her body, shattering her. Breaking her. The urge to let go, to release the magic and escape the agony was overwhelming, and she had to grit her teeth, biting down on her lip as she fought against both the pain and the instinct to let go. It was a thousand times harder than she’d ever thought it would be, even with all the dire warnings she’d heard and read in relation to the spell, but she filled her mind with thoughts about the people that she had hurt in her life. The people who had been caught up in this tragedy that she had fought so hard to prevent and failed.

For them.

For Meredy.

For Crime Sorciere.

She would withstand any amount of pain.

    As the magic moved deeper, tearing her apart from the inside out, she allowed herself to become lost in her memories, seeing them with fresh eyes. It was only now, as it was all ripped away from her that she was able to see just how much she’d had in her life, despite what she had done… and in some cases, because of what she had done, and she felt her eyes beginning to burn as it dawned on her just how much of her time she had wasted. It was almost enough to make her falter. Almost. Because if her time, her life, however misspent, could save even a single person caught up in the devastation that had been unleashed on the city then she would consider her life well spent.

    The magic was rising now, swirling around her as it reached its crescendo. Then just like that, it dissipated, only blue sparks drifting through the air around her proving that it had been there, and with a breathless whimper, she slumped forwards, unable to hold herself upright anymore. Her body was broken, wracked by pain, each breath burning in her chest, but she still forced herself to lift her head just enough to turn and peer up at the clock tower looming above her.

“Time…Time…Went back…One minute?!” Dark eyes widened as she stared at the clock in horrified disbelief, the burning sensation become actual tears that filled her eyes, blurring her vision as the weight of what had happened…the realisation of how little had changed settled over her. “The value of my life…is just one minute…” Had she been naïve to imagine that an existence like hers could have been worth more than a single moment of time? The tears overflowed as she began to crumple, a sob wracking her as she tore her gaze away from the clock, away from the undeniable evidence of her failure. “I couldn’t save a single soul…” She whispered as she slumped completely, curling on her side as devastation ripped through her, more painful than the physical toll of the spell, as she was forced to acknowledge her failure.

Unaware that that single, precious moment had changed everything.

****

   Gajeel froze, blinking in confusion as something washed over him, foreign magic tingling beneath his skin before something clicked into place in his mind, and he sprang to the side. Narrowly avoiding an attack that he was sure had hit him only seconds before and as he caught his balance, he still felt the phantom ache of claws rending his chest.

 “ROAR OF THE IRON DRAGON!” He bellowed, emotions old and new lending strength to his attack, forcing the Dragon back a few feet and he seized the opportunity to retreat, putting more distance between them as he frantically tried to work out what the hell was going on. Even now, as he halted, eyes still locked on his opponent, he could feel the effects of Natsu’s mourning cry, and yet… something had changed. No, time had changed, he corrected himself, glancing at his chest and swallowing, as he recalled the blow that had knocked him flying and left him teetering on the edge. Time changed. He was certain about that, although he couldn’t explain his certainty, so why, hadn’t Natsu’s cry changed? Why could he still feel the other’s sorrow, and the urge to avenge the Dragon-slayer’s pain?

_Was it not enough to change what happened?_

  His draconic side was growing impatient with his whirling thoughts, still riled up and reacting on an instinctual level to the knowledge that a fellow Dragon was in pain. However, his human side wasn’t as convinced anymore, and he could feel his control returning as he glared up at his opponent who had recovered from the attack and was now lumbering towards him once more, and at that moment, he made a decision. Ignoring the frustrated howl in the back of his mind he turned and bolted away from the fight, heading back in the direction where he had last seen Gray before the battle had forced them apart, biting his lip as he fought to ignore his draconic side’s increasingly desperate attempts to lure him back into the fight.

    Whatever had granted him that glimpse of the future had been enough to save his life, and he had no idea of knowing if it had been limited to him, or whether the same thing had happened to the rest of the guild. However, if there was the slightest chance that it might have changed what had happened to Gray…if it might have saved him, he had to make sure. And not just for his own peace of mind, but for Natsu’s sake, before the other Dragon-slayer did something irreversible in his grieving state – and that last thought saw him speeding up.

****

    Gray blinked, struck by a strange, disorientating feeling of deja vu as the world around him to shift, doubling in on itself for a split second, and then his mind was filled with a vivid image of himself being struck by multiple attacks. There was an echo of the pain of those blasts in his chest, and the image had barely registered before both he and his companions sprang into action.

Juvia was falling…

The blasts rushing towards him…

     Ice sparkled in the air in front of him as Lyon darted forwards with a desperate shout, and then Gray’s ice was joining his, shoring it up, as the first of the blasts slammed into it, showering them in slivers of ice. Lyon’s fingers grazed his shoulder, relief evident in the silvery eyes before they were both moving to stand back to back, their magic swelling and flaring as they forced their attackers to retreat, buying themselves time and room to breathe.

“What the hell was that?” He demanded, breathing hard as they seized the pause in the battle to take stock, unable to prevent one hand from drifting up to the spot on the chest where he was sure the first blast had struck him. The skin was unblemished, yet it seemed to him that there was still an echo of the pain of that attack hitting home, and he nearly leapt out of his skin as someone grasped his arm. He turned half-expecting it to be Lyon, but when he turned, he saw that the older Ice mage was doubled over, breathing heavily and staring at him with wide eyes and that it was Juvia who had crept up beside him, tears streaming down her cheeks as she stared at him like he was a ghost.

“Gray-sama?” There was a world of guilt and pain in her voice, and he could see how her eyes flickered to every location that he knew marked a spot where the attacks had landed. As much as he hated seeing the anguish and guilt in her eyes, it was reassuring to see where she was looking, and to know that he wasn’t going crazy, unable to stop himself rubbing at his chest once more.

“I’m fine,” he murmured finally, pulling his hand away as he saw her tracing its movement. “And it wasn’t your fault,” he added reassuringly, tone firm enough not to leave any room for debate as he saw her mouth opening. He refused to let Juvia wallow in misplaced guilt, especially when he knew that if that situation rose again, then he would still throw himself between her and any attack coming her way. It was the Fairy Tail way after all, even if it would be a while before he was able to forget what had happened…and the pain.

“But what happened?” Meredy was the one to broach the topic as she came up alongside them, but despite her focus, her eyes were suspiciously bright as she glanced at him, and Gray smiled reassuringly at her, realising that she had been crying. “We did all see that right?” It was a relief to hear his own uncertainty reflected in her words and to see them all nodding, although he frowned as he realised that meant that they had all been affected by some sort of spell. A powerful spell, if it had that kind of range and influence.

“Could it have come from the gate? After all, that affects time doesn’t it?” Lyon ventured with a frown, glancing back towards the castle and the Eclipse gate. They still knew next to nothing about the strange contraption after all, and he knew that despite all the pain and destruction that had been caused because of it, he would be eternally grateful to it if it was the reason that Gray was still alive.

“Possibly, but I got the impression that it doesn’t work like that,” Gray muttered, wishing that they’d had more time to try and understand the gate before everything went to hell, or that Lucy was here as she’d seemed to have at least some knowledge about it. Then he frowned and turned back to look at Meredy. “What about Ultear? Could she have done this?” It seemed more likely to him, and Meredy gaped at him for a moment before pausing to consider what he was saying, but then she sighed and shook her head.

“No, not even Ultear has that amount of power,” she said, sounding somewhat guilty for actually doubting the older woman. However, Ultear had always told her that there were limits to how time could be manipulated in order to protect the natural order, and she had a feeling that this was one of those limits. “She couldn’t have done this.”

****

    The ripple in time swept over Natsu and Future-Rogue as they battled furiously on Motherglare’s back, both refusing to give ground. Yet, as the foreign magic reached him, Natsu faltered as the darkness that had been consuming him seemed to flicker and loosen its grip for a second, the human, more rational part of him stirring and holding him in place for a second. _Something’s changed._ There was a shifting, and with it came a spark of awareness, and for a fleeting moment, he roused himself, emerging from the corner of his mind where he had been hiding, tentatively trying to investigate, especially when it felt like something had just brushed against the back of his mind. Something warm, and alive, and his breath caught.

_…Gray?_

     However, before he could seize hold of the sensation and before that spark of rationality could become something more, his draconic side surged forth, easily re-establishing its control and forcing him back into his corner. He didn’t have the strength or will to fight it, the brief flicker of hope that had tried to take hold, dying a swift death as another anguished cry was ripped from his lips. _No, he’s gone. He’s gone._ He couldn’t afford to let himself hope only for it all to be torn away from him again, especially as he was barely holding on as it was, and he needed to keep himself together a little longer, just until this battle was finished.

_He’s gone._

    With that thought, his fury took over once more, flames dancing around him as he sprang forward once more with a ferocious snarl, lashing out with all his strength and flinging Future-Rogue down against Motherglare’s scaled back. He revelled in the pained cry, as his flames caught hold in the other Dragon-slayer’s clothes, leaving him writhing and clawing at the scales beneath him. No attack in the world could ever hurt the other man as much as he had hurt Natsu, but Natsu was determined to make him feel every bit of pain that he could before the end.

****

     Gray and the others had been regrouping. Still, no closer to working out what had happened, when the sound of running feet drew their attention, and all four of them immediately moved into ready positions, wary after the previous events. However, they all paused as Gajeel came into view a few seconds later, red-faced with effort, and an urgent expression on his which gave way to relief and hope as soon as his gaze landed on Gray who frowned at the odd reaction.

 “You’re alive!” Gajeel gasped as he skidded to a halt beside them, doubled over for a moment as he fought to catch his breath. However, he quickly lifted his head so that he could still see Gray. Relieved to feel his draconic side finally beginning to settle, as they both absorbed the sight of Gray, alive and safe, the urge to avenge him and to help Natsu seek revenge slowly beginning to seep away. However, his relief was short-lived, as a moment later a second anguished cry rang through the air, and although it lacked the volume and power of the first, he still flinched at the sorrow it conveyed, before he frowned in confusion. Why was Natsu still unaware that Gray was safe? The bond that existed between mated pairs should have re-established itself the second that time had shifted, and yet there was nothing in that sound to indicate that Natsu was aware that Gray was alive, and he swallowed as he realised that the other Dragon-slayer was still mourning his mate.

 “Natsu?” Gray asked glancing skywards as the sound registered, something stirring in the back of his mind as he was assailed by the memory of hearing a similar cry only moments, back when he had fallen. _Natsu._ He remembered his pain, his grief…the realisation that Natsu was trying to save him, and that it was too late, and now he felt something in his heart clench at the anguish in his Mate’s voice. _Surely, he knows that I’m okay,_ he thought, already reaching out through the bond even as he turned to look at Gajeel. “What’s happening?” However, before Gajeel could answer he had brushed against Natsu’s mind, only to find himself recoiling as the contact was cut off by a wave of darkness, that had him shivering as dread pooled in the pit of his stomach. “Natsu…”

“The Salamander thinks that you're dead,” Gajeel said bluntly, knowing that they didn’t have time for him to sugar-coat things, especially as he hadn’t missed the way Gray had flinched a second before, knowing that the Ice mage had been reaching out to Natsu. He dreaded to think what state the other Dragon-slayer’s mind must be in at the moment, although he almost regretted his approach when Gray paled, remembered pain flashing through his eyes, reinforcing that whatever had happened to him had been bad. “For some reason, whatever spell affected us and our time, doesn’t seem to have reached him and he still thinks that he’s lost you.”

  Gray swallowed, his mouth going dry as what Gajeel was saying hit home, recalling all too well how Natsu had reacted on Tenroujima when Acnologia had almost killed him. That had been a close call. This…this had been far worse, and he was afraid to imagine just how Natsu was reacting if he thought that he was really gone. Deaf to the worried voices around him, he reached out through the bond once more, shoving frantically against the darkness when he reached it, his mental hands sinking into the shadows before he was so violently rebuffed that he found himself physically staggering from the impact. Grimly he tried again, ignoring the headache that was rapidly building in the back of his head from his efforts, and trying not to panic as it dawned on him that although he could feel that Natsu was there, he couldn’t get any reading whatsoever on the Dragon-slayer. It was like when Natsu had masked his presence back on Tenroujima, but a thousand times worse, and icy fear pierced him as he came back to himself.

“I can’t reach him!” He whispered, turning to look at Gajeel in desperation, praying that the other Dragon-slayer would have some way of getting them out of this situation or some idea of how he could get through to his mate. And soon…because he knew that Natsu was going to do something incredibly reckless if he wasn’t stopped soon because he had no reason not to as long as he thought that Gray was gone.

“You need to get to Natsu right now!” Gajeel growled urgently, just as another cry rang through the air, his own draconic side while settling was still riled up from Natsu’s first grieving cry, and it was taking all his willpower not to punch the Ice Mage for the delay. He held himself back, knowing that it wouldn’t help anyone and that it might turn Natsu’s wrath in his direction. “He won’t believe anyone else right now, he needs you to be there physically. Hopefully, he’ll still believe his own senses...” He hesitated for a moment, but there was no way he was going to tell Gray that there was a chance that Natsu was already too far gone to recognise his own mate. He just had to hope that their bond which had always seemed so strong, was strong enough for this.

“Gray go, we can handle things here,” Lyon ordered, utterly confused about what was going on, but not needing to understand in the face of the fear and anguish that he could see in Gray’s eyes. The desperation that was pouring off him in waves. Beside him, Meredy and Juvia nodded, albeit somewhat reluctantly on the latter’s behalf.

“Thank you,” Gray whispered, and then he was gone, taking off in the direction that Natsu’s cry had come from. Having to rely on that noise to guide him, as right now he couldn’t even get a vague direction through the darkness tainting their bond and he swallowed, blinking back sudden tears, unable to completely silence the small voice that whispered he might already be too late. All he could do was run and pray that he managed to get there before the Dragon-slayer managed to do something stupid.

_Please, Natsu. I’m coming._


	3. Chapter 3

    Another cry of pain was torn from Natsu’s lips as he was sent flying once more, frantically scrabbling at the scales beneath him as he tried to stop his slide towards the edge. Finally, at the very last second, he managed to dig his fingers into a crack, halting his fall and hanging limply for a moment, legs dangling over what would have been a terrifying drop if he had been in his right mind. However, even as wild as he was right now, his mid…or his draconic side’s mind was racing as he fought to catch his breath, trying to work out a way to end this, exhaustion and injury slowing his movements. His body was growing heavier with each second that passed, and he knew with sinking certainty, that he only had a little time left to do what needed to be done before he would be left unable to fight, and he snarled. Fury and desperation caught in the sound because he needed to avenge Gray before that.

_Gray…_

    Thought of his mate, and what had been done to him, gave him the strength he needed to claw his way back up onto Motherglare’s back, deaf to the Dragon’s pained noises as the flames around his grip left a scorched trail in his wake. Still, it didn’t stop him from swaying as he rose to his feet, locking his knees to try and keep himself in place as he lifted his furious gaze to Future-Rogue’s once more, lips drawn back in a snarl, that only deepened as the other Dragon-slayer chuckled at his pitiful state. The noise had his hands curling into fists, and taking a deep breath, he dug deep and managed to call forth fresh flames to wrap around his hands once more, but even he could tell that they were weaker than before. _Too weak,_ and eh he knew he had to end this here and now, although he wasn’t sure how he was going to do it, knowing deep down that this fire wasn’t enough.

    However, before he could dig deep enough to lunge forward and attack again, the sky around them which had been bleeding into purple as his flames clashed with the blue, now blazed with a sudden burst of golden light. It was blinding, disorientating them for a second, and despite themselves, both Dragon-slayers found themselves turning to seek out its source. For Natsu, however, the light came with a familiar warmth that was a balm against his raw, aching soul, and at the back of his mind, his human half began to stir, peeking out from where it had hidden away.  _Lucy…_ He knew that magic, almost as well as he knew his own…and his… his mind blanked for a moment, the grief too much, but the magic was calling to him, and he blinked. He knew it, although he had never felt it in such vast amounts before, and there was a brief flicker of curiosity beneath the other darker emotions as he wondered what she could be attempting to do.

    He was the first to move, shaking off his shock and staggering forward until he could peer over the edge. It was a long way to ground, but it was no match for his enhanced eyesight, and it didn’t take him long to trace the golden light back to its source, eyes widening as he spotted the Celestial mages in the centre of the blazing light. It took a moment for his mind to comprehend what they were desperately trying to do, but with it came the spark of an idea, and for the first time since Gray had fallen he felt his draconic side settle enough to listen to his thoughts.

_The Gate._

_The Gate caused all of this, and if he could just destroy it, then Future-Rogue and everything that he had brought through it would be banished back to where they had come from._

_His family would be safe, and Gray would be avenged._

_And then he could rest._

With a deep, rumbling growl, his draconic side surged back to the front of his mind, but this time they were unified in their goal and Natsu willingly subsided. _Gray, I am going to finish this. Wait for me,_ he thought, as he bared his teeth at Future-Rogue, pleased to see a flicker of uncertainty in the dark eyes as the other Dragon-slayer took in the change in his expression and posture. “It’s over,” he snarled, his flames leaping high once more as he lunged forwards, determination and fury propelling him forwards, even as the other Dragon-slayer’s magic swelled out towards him in retaliation. _That won’t stop me this time._

    There was a rumbling growl from somewhere behind him, and then Atlas Flame was over them, his flames roaring and crackling as he bellowed. “Natsu!” He had realised what Natsu was attempting and moved to help, before realising that this was something the grieving Dragon-slayer had to do this himself. Instead, he opened his mouth, letting his flames pour out in a fierce stream, the flames lashing at the three below him, the flow of power wrapping itself around Natsu as he lent all of his strength to Igneel’s child. He knew that the Dragon-slayer had been fading, the power that had pulled him back to himself flickering around the edges, and he was determined to make sure that Natsu had the strength he needed to avenge his Mate, regardless of the cost.

   Natsu had been ready to snarl at the Dragon he had claimed as ‘uncle’ not long before, wanting…no needing to do this himself, but the urge had died as he’d felt the Dragon’s magic wrapping itself around him, lending him the power to do what was needed. As his world narrowed down to the fire around him, and his target below him, he dove deep, summoning every scrap of power that he had left, finally allowing the full pain of his loss to fill his mind, a broken noise falling from his lips. _Gray._ It hurt, but he clung to those feelings, using them to drive him onwards. Tears were streaming down his cheeks, at odds with his snarl as he collided with the other Dragon-slayer, the flames around him hungrily reaching out to engulf Future-Rogue, before spreading to Motherglare as well, causing the Dragon to let out a bellow of pain.

 _It’s going to be over soon, Gray,_ he thought as he felt them all beginning to lose altitude. Atlas Flame moved above them, throwing his weight against Motherglare and forcing them lower, the impact adding to their speed as they plummeted beneath his efforts, the flames around them being whipped into an inferno that couldn’t be contained.

**

    The mages on the ground had been caught up in what was happening as Lucy and Yukino kept throwing everything they had at the gate, with no sign of success, and it took them a moment to realise that the light in the air above them had shifted. It was no longer the beautiful gold of the Celestial magic that was being used, but something darker and more dangerous, and they turned, watching in stunned disbelief as they took in the fireball that was descending towards them at great speeds. It took longer to make out the Dragons in the centre of it, the heat from it already reaching them, and dulling their reactions.

“Get back! Everyone get away from the Portal!” Happy was the first to comprehend what was happening, voice rising in alarm as he realised just what it was that was tearing towards them. It shattered the shock that had locked them in place, and they scattered at once in a desperate attempt to escape the incoming devastation. Realising that there would be a minimal likelihood of surviving if they wound up caught up in the centre of it.

They just made it.

    They had barely reached a minimum safe distance when the fireball slammed into the Eclipse gate with devastating force. Natsu was in the midst of it all, blind to his friends who had barely escaped the destruction, and only vaguely aware of the structure crumbling beneath him. He had a brief second of elation, and then he was being flung through the air as the gate exploded, the world around him descending into flames once more. Then he was falling, pulled earthwards once more, and he let his eyes slip shut as he finally released his hold on his magic, his flames now little more than a weak spark deep inside, and all he could do was pray that it was finally over, as he knew that he had no strength left to fight any longer.

****

    It took several agonisingly long minutes for the dust to clear enough to reveal the destroyed remains of the Eclipse Gate, and for a long moment, there was nothing but silence, everyone frozen in disbelief as they realised that it had finally been destroyed. There was a bubble of triumph rising, a jubilant air trying to take hold, but before they could give in to the temptation to erupt into celebration their attention was drawn to the figure that was staggering away from the debris. The Fairy Tail mages letting out alarmed cries as they realised it was Natsu, immediately moving towards him as they watched him barely managing to catch himself as his knees threatened to buckle beneath him. However, before they could reach him, they found their path blocked by Wendy and Laxus, the other two Dragon-slayers spreading their arms in a clear ‘keep away’ gesture.

“Stay back!” Laxus growled, echoed by Wendy, and everyone froze in surprise at the both their words and the pained edge to their voices, obeying more out of shock than any real realisation that these two probably had a better handle on what was happening than the rest of them did.

    For his part, Natsu seemed to be utterly blind to their presence as he staggered forward a few more steps, before finally losing his fight to remain vertical, dropping heavily to his knees amongst the rubble. He slumped, head hanging low, and slowly the became aware of the low, keening noise coming from him, the sound grating on nerves already on edge after his terrifying, heart-broken cries from before, and they shifted uneasily, exchanging worried glances.

_What happened to him?_

“We can’t just leave him like that,” Lucy was the first to speak out, protesting as she slowly drew her gaze away from her best friend, turning to glare at the other two Dragon-slayer’s, although the heat in her gaze faded as she studied them. Their expressions were twisted with pained understanding, but it was the fear that she could see lurking in their eyes that had her mouth going dry. “What is it? What aren’t you telling us?” She demanded anxiously, her tone, and the rising volume of her words drawing everyone’s attention, although Natsu still gave no sign of having heard them, and the two flinched as all eyes landed on them once more.

 “He’s not himself at the moment, just like on Tenroujima,” Wendy was the one to reply, voice quiet, but there was something off about her voice, and Lucy shook her head, seeing the lie in the eyes that refused to meet her gaze.

“No there’s something else, so what aren’t you telling us?” She demanded, rare steel bleeding into her voice as she took a step forward. She trusted them, but this was Natsu. Natsu who was clearly hurting in more ways than she could understand, and she needed to know, watching as Laxus and Wendy exchanged nervous glances, holding a quick, but silent conversation. It did nothing to ease her worry or the fear that was growing in her chest, and she was about to demand an answer when another voice rang out above them.

“This is the one that mourns?” Zirconis asked, voice oddly strangled, all mocking and superiority gone from his voice. Alarmed the group whirled to face him, several with spells ready to be unleashed as they realised, they had forgotten him in the immediate aftermath of the gate’s destruction and Natsu’s condition, and they were startled by the pained expression that had settled over his face.

 “Mourns?” Mira asked anxiously her gaze darting between the Dragon and Natsu, a sense of foreboding settling over her as the previously aggressive creature lowered his head until it was on a level with them. Something that she was certain he would not have done before, and she swallowed, taken aback by the oddly human expression of sorrow in his eyes. “What do you mean he mourns?” Understanding was tugging at the edge of her thoughts, especially as Laxus and Wendy winced at the question, but she didn’t want to consider what that might mean.

“He has lost his mate,” the Dragon replied softly, unaware of the horror and sorrow that his words had just sent through the gathered Fairy Tail Mages. Now that the future Dragon-slayer’s control over him had faded he could feel the instinctive pull to help the mage crouched a short distance away, quivering, as the Dragon’s loss washed over him, the grief almost more than he could bear. However, he made no move to act as he caught subtle movement in the flames beyond the kneeling Dragon-slayer and felt a familiar presence in the flames. Atlas Flame had already sided with the boy once, and he knew that he would help him with this, and besides, he could already feel himself beginning to fade away from this world, unsurprised to glance down and see his skin already turning to translucent gold.

“Gray?” Lucy whispered, comprehension dawning as she slowly turned back to look at the two Dragon-slayers, seeing the grief that was rising in her chest reflected in their expressions as they nodded silently. Their pain unlocked her own, and she couldn’t hold back the sob that bubbled up, and beside her Mira dropped to her knees, her shoulders shaking as she tried to rein in her own tears, and they all trembled, trying to contemplate a world without the Ice Mage.

****

    Gray’s frantic attempts to reach Natsu had faltered when he had glimpsed the vast, fiery plume lighting up the sky above him. Horror and fear had locked him in place, his attempts to reach Natsu still going unanswered. Although when he felt the ground beneath his feet shaking seconds after the Fireball had struck the city, he didn’t need an answer, realising that there was only one thing that could have done this.

Or rather, only one person.

_Natsu._

“Flamebrain,” he breathed, and before he was even aware of it, he was moving onwards once more, but now he had a set destination in mind, and he found himself speeding up. _Natsu, wait for me. Don’t do anything stupid,_ he was shouting in his mind, crying out in the hope that the words would somehow manage to reach Natsu through the sealed off bond.

_Natsu, please…_

****

   No one knew what to do, and with Wendy and Laxus standing sentinel in front of them, there was no way for them to act. However, they were all jolted from their grief-stricken state as the ground around them rumbled once more, and there was movement in the flames that had consumed what remained of the gate, and they all tensed in alarm as Atlas Flame emerged behind Natsu. It didn’t take them long to realise that he was fading around the edges, golden sparks dancing around him, as he was slowly pulled out of their world, and a quick glance at Zirconis confirmed that he was disappearing too. The Fire Dragon didn’t seem fazed by what was happening to his body though, appearing to consider them for a moment through burning eyes, before dismissing them as he turned his head towards Natsu, and they could’ve sworn that they saw grief in his face as he lowered his head towards the Dragon-slayer even as he stepped forward.

“Leave them,” Laxus murmured, reaching out to lay a hand on Mira’s shoulder, squeezing lightly in warning as she tried to pull free and get to Natsu. She glared up at him, clearly worried by the proximity of the Fire Dragon, especially when Natsu had still given no sign of being aware of what was happening around him or the danger that he might be in.

 “But…”

“A Dragon cannot continue to live without his mate.” It was Zirconis who replied, his voice as faded as his body, but still loud in the silence that had fallen as they watched the scene unfolding in front of him, and Mira and Lucy turned horrified eyes towards him. However, there was no hint of a lie in his eyes, and terror gripped them as they realised, he was serious.

“No…” Lucy whispered, and then she was moving, whirling back towards her friend, and fully intending to go to him and stop this madness. They had already lost Gray, and her heart broke anew at that reminder, her resolve hardening – they couldn’t afford to lose Natsu as well. However, before she had gone more than two steps, a desperate hand had wrapped itself around her arm and was fighting to hold her in place. “Let me go! I have to…” She hissed, only to trail off as she turned to see who had grabbed her, coming up short as she found herself staring into Wendy’s tearful eyes.

 “I don’t want to l-lose him either,” Wendy whispered, her voice cracking and breaking, tears beginning to trickle down her cheeks as she glanced towards Natsu. “But you don’t understand how much pain he must be in right now…”

“I know he’s hurting, more than I can possibly imagine.” She was grieving, an ache in her heart that she wasn’t sure would ever heal, and she knew that Natsu would have it a thousand times more, and her heart went out to him again. “But that’s no reason to throw away his life!” She added fiercely, although there was less heat behind the words than she’d intended, and she found herself unable to bring herself to escape Wendy’s grip as the younger girl sniffled and shook her head.

“It is for a Dragon,” Wendy whispered, glancing back towards Natsu, remembering the sorrow that had flooded her when his cries had rung out over the city and knowing that what she had felt had been a mere taste of what he was currently experiencing and something in her expression made Lucy sag in defeat. Because there were love and grief in that gaze, and she knew that Wendy would have gone to him if she could, the younger girl having seen him as a brother since the moment they’d met, and that had only continued to grow, blossoming into a bond that the entire guild could see.

  _But, Natsu…_

She wanted to fight this, to scream and shout until Natsu heard them, and yet the words wouldn’t come, and the others didn’t look much better. Instead, they stood there, unable to do anything but watch as Atlas Flame approached their guildmate, hearts breaking as they realised what they might be able to witness, but unable or rather unwilling to allow him to face this on his own.

*

“Natsu,” Atlas Flame rumbled as he crouched over the child whose hurt had been enough to break his enchantment, the Dragon-slayer who had shown him that power of Dragons wasn’t entirely gone from the world. He could feel the pull of the past, his body and magic no longer having a place in this world, and he knew that he did not have much time left, lowering his head as he focused on the one who had claimed him as family such a short time ago. “Natsu, look at me,” he ordered, voice the softest growl that he could manage, unsure of whether or not Natsu was already too far gone to hear his words, let alone make a decision. However, after several long seconds, the Dragon-slayer stirred, slowly lifting his head to stare up at him. Dark amber met his gaze, telling him that Natsu’s draconic side was still at the surface, and there was such deep agony in that gaze, that the ancient Dragon felt his own heart clenching in grief at the sight. It was a pain that no Dragon would ever wish on another, an agony that he would never have wished on his worst enemy let alone on the child of a dear friend.

“I lost him,” Natsu mumbled, sounding utterly lost, his voice almost lost in the roar of the flames, and it was clear that he was aware of little more than the mesmerising dance of Atlas Flame’s fire. “I  lost Gray…I lost him…” The words repeated, not a mantra, but as though there were no other words left in the Dragon-slayer, and Atlas Flame sighed, before lowering his head until it rested on the ground, his eye level with Natsu.

“Natsu,” he called softly, breaking into the soft, heart-broken mumbling as Natsu turned to look at him, staring numbly as the words faded away, something akin to understanding blossoming in his eyes. Atlas Flame almost wished that he hadn’t understood what was being offered, but he couldn’t and wouldn’t take it back, although he had to close his eyes for a moment as Natsu took a deep, shuddering breath before pleading faintly.

“Help me.”

      He had anticipated the request, had even welcomed it to an extent, just so that he wouldn’t fade from this world knowing that he had left Igneel’s child to suffer. Still, it hurt in a way that he had never thought possible to know that the only thing that he could do to help the boy at this point was to offer him an escape from his pain. “Very well,” he agreed softly, making no effort to hide his grief, and there was a faint relaxing in Natsu’s tense posture, as the Dragon-slayer bowed his head in relief and acceptance of his words.

_Soon. Soon I will be with you, Gray…_

_Wait for me._

****

_Natsu! Natsu answer me! Oi Flamebrain, can’t you hear me? NATSU!_

     Gray’s chest was heaving, each breath burning in his chest as he dashed towards where the Eclipse Gate had been, feeling every ache and pain from both the tournament and the battles that had followed as he forced himself to keep running. However, with each step he took, he was reaching out to Natsu, flinging himself at the block that had formed in their mental bond, with no success, his words reflected back to him. What was worse was that he could feel the darkness that was sealing it off, and it seemed to him that it was growing deeper, and colder, with each failed attempt, and some instinctual part of him knew that it meant that he was losing Natsu. That the Dragon-slayer was slipping away from him, he just didn’t know how it was happening, and no matter what he tried he couldn’t seem to reach Natsu.

    Finally, he rounded a corner and the gate, or rather what remained of it and the flames engulfing it came into sight, and he had a split second of awe at seeing what his hot-headed mate had managed to do this time. However, his attention was quickly caught by the small group of people that were gathered a safe distance from the burning gate, easily picking out his guildmates amongst them, and he was about to call out to them when his gave moved past them to the scene they were focused on. At once all words went from his mind, his heart in his mouth as he saw who they were looking at, a roaring sound flooding his ears as he realised exactly who the crouched figure on the ground was.

_Natsu…_

A maelstrom of emotions struck him as he saw the Dragon-slayer. Pain. Fear. Longing. They all washed over him as he stumbled to a halt, drinking in the sight of the obviously alive Dragon-slayer as it dawned on him for the first time, just how much he had feared that he was already too late. The relief was short-lived, however, as he finally took notice of the Fire Dragon that was looming over his mate, and for a wild moment, all he could focus on was the fact that no one was trying to intervene. Their friends, their family seemingly just standing there while Natsu… He blinked, a leaden weight settling in the pit of his stomach as he remembered Gajeel’s panic, the urgency in his words as he’d sent Gray to find Natsu. And understanding hit like a lightning bolt, his eyes widening in horror as he realised just what his mate planned on doing.

“NATSU!” He screamed as he bolted forward, terror lending him speed as he shot forwards, desperately renewing his attempts to break through their bond. _Natsu! Natsu stop this! I’m right here! Please, don’t do this. Please…_ However, the block still refused to yield, and the Dragon-Slayer had given no outward sign of hearing him, even though the watching group had turned as soon as they heard his voice. He paid no heed to their frantic shouts or emotional expressions as he tore past them, his entire world narrowing down to Natsu.

_Please._

“NATSU!” He hollered again, although this time in sheer terror as he saw the Dragon raising a flaming paw over his crouched mate, instinctively realising what was about to happen and feeling his heart break as Natsu made no attempt to escape what would be a fatal blow if it struck. “ICE MAKE: SHIELD!” He roared, knowing that an ice barrier would have little effect against those flames, but hoping that it would at least distract the Dragon long enough for him to reach Natsu’s side and come up with something else to protect his Mate. _Damn it Natsu! I’m right here! Please hear my voice!_

    The sudden appearance of the ice barrier had startled him, and Atlas Flame reared back in surprise, his blow missing his intended target by a narrow margin and instead shattering the fragile shield into a million pieces. It was enough time to for Gray to close the distance between them and without hesitation he sprang between the pair, trying not to flinch as he felt the full force of the heat coming off the Fire Dragon. “Don’t hurt him!” Gray yelled desperately spreading his arms wide in a futile attempt at staving off the attack he was sure to come. To his surprise, the Fire Dragon froze at his action, and he realised a moment later that the creature was sniffing the air with an expression of confusion on his face.

“You smell like him,” Atlas Flame said in surprise as he lowered his head to peer at the mage that had stepped in between him and Natsu, impressed with the human’s courage and intrigued by his scent. For a scent to be this mingled usually indicated that they were a mated pair, and yet Natsu was showing no sign of recognition towards the human mage stood between them, and he narrowed his eyes in suspicion, letting his flames flare a little brighter even as he could feel it speeding it up his disappearance. “Who are you?”

    Gray blinked in surprise at the words and question before tilting his head to peer back at Natsu in concern, hoping for some sign that he knew that he was there. But the Dragon-Slayer had still made no effort to move from his position on the ground, and the Ice Mage wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around his Mate and make him see that he was here, but he knew that he had to deal with this first.

“He’s my mate,” Gray stated as he stood tall, trying to fill his voice and expression with everything that statement meant to him as he met the Dragon’s burning gaze without hesitation.

    Atlas Flame could feel the sincerity pouring off the mage in front of him, and see the devotion and love shining in the dark eyes as he proclaimed his status. He had no idea why Natsu was unable to realise that his Mate was still with him, and stood right in front him, nor did he understand the lack of recognition that the Dragon-Slayer was showing. However, there was no lie in the human’s words, and he had no doubt that the Ice Mage was telling the truth and he felt relief wash over him as he realised that this Dragon-child would be able to live on after all. Satisfied he bowed his head, no longer battling against the magic trying to pull him back to his own time as he peered down at Natsu with soft eyes.

“I am glad son of Igneel,” he murmured softly before fading away completely, and Gray felt some of the tension ease out of his body, even as he tilted his head to glance at the Dragon-slayer behind him. However, it quickly became clear that Natsu still wasn’t with him as the Dragon-slayer was staring at the space where the Dragon had been with a devastated expression, seemingly unaware that Gray was standing right there in front of him.

    Gray turned back to Natsu once the last traces of the Dragon had vanished from view, unwilling to take any chances when he had come so close to losing his mate. His expression falling as he took in how broken the Dragon-slayer looked, noting with concern not only the fact that Natsu had yet to lose his draconic characteristics, but also the many injuries marring his body. It was a miracle the Natsu was still conscious, let alone remotely upright, although he had a feeling that he wouldn’t be for much longer and he instinctively knew that he had to make Natsu realise he was still here before that happened. That he needed to get Natsu to see and hear him before it was too late, otherwise the other would have no reason to come back to him.

“Natsu?” He called softly as he slowly closed the gap between them, dropping down so that he was at eye-level with his Mate. His heart breaking anew as he saw the devastation in the amber eyes that were refusing to focus on him, missing the warm olive that would look at him as though he was the centre of the universe and his voice cracked and broke as he tried again. “N-Natsu please look at me. Please…” He was begging now, even as he reached out to brush trembling fingers against a scaled cheek in the hopes of capturing the Dragon-slayer’s attention. “Natsu!”

 


	4. Chapter 4

“Natsu, please come back to me,” Gray whispered, more desperate than ever as the Dragon-slayer showed no sign of responding even a little to the sound of his voice. At this point he was cradling his mate’s face in both hands, his eyes burning as he stared into the hollow, amber ones, searching for some spark of the Dragon-slayer in their depths. He was shaking, his mind racing as he tried to work out what he could do or say that would get through to Natsu and bring him back. _Natsu, how do I reach you this time?_

There was no question that his usual way of knocking sense into the block-headed Dragon-slayer – a good punch, was utterly out of the question right now. Not least because the last couple minutes all colour had drained out of Natsu’s face, leaving the crimson scales standing out all the more vividly, and making it clear that he wasn’t going to be conscious for much longer, and the Ice Mage had no intention of speeding up the process. On top of that, he knew from experience that when Natsu was this tightly fused with his draconic side, that any physical touch that showed the slightest hint of violence would be treated as an enemy attack. Not only did he not want to be on the receiving end of a Dragon’s fury, especially as he doubted his mate’s ability to recognise him right now, but he also knew that Natsu would never be able to forgive himself if he truly hurt Gray.

    Still no closer to an answer, he used trembling fingers to brush away the tears that had started to fall silently down the Dragon-slayer’s face, however, as soon as he wiped them away, they were replaced with fresh ones, and it was taking all his strength not to add his own tears to the mess. _Natsu, how do I fix this?_ He had never been able to bear the sight of Natsu’s tears, not even when they were younger and barely capable of having a remotely civil conversation. Hell, half of the fights he had initiated with the Dragon-slayer as a child had been an attempt to distract him whenever Natsu had been sad about Igneel, hating to see his rival downhearted. That desire had only continued to grow since then, to the point where he would do anything, especially right now, if it would stop Natsu’s tears. However, right now all he had was words, and he wasn’t sure that was going to be enough.

“Natsu,” he murmured, trying again, letting his fingers come to rest in the path of the tears. “Natsu, you need to come back to me so that we can go home.” He was struggling to keep his voice as calm and even as possible, watching closely for even the slightest hint of awareness. “We’re officially the strongest guild in Fiore now, which means there are going to be so many jobs flooding in and we’re going to have our pick of them.” In all honesty, it felt like a lifetime since the end of the Games, and he shook his head, brushing away for tears. “So, maybe we can get a well-paid one and go away for a vacation? A holiday just for the two of us…would you like that?” He asked, softly, tenderly as he stared into Natsu’s eyes. How long had it been since they’d done something with just the two of them? He couldn’t remember, and as much as he loved their friends, and with how hectic things had been since the S-class trials there had been no time, he found himself regretting that fact as the amber eyes remained eerily blank.

*

    The others were still stood a safe distance away, not wanting to intrude, and still recovering from the terror of seeing Gray facing off against Atlas Flame, and the shocked joy of realising that the Ice Mage was still with them. However, those feelings were fading away, fear and concern creeping in as they watched Gray trying, again and again, to get through to the Dragon-slayer.

“Why isn’t he reacting to Gray?” Lucy was the first to ask, carefully keeping her voice to little more than a whisper, not wanting to risk disturbing Gray’s efforts as she looked to Wendy for answers. The younger girl was watching the pair with tearful eyes, and her expression as she turned towards the Celestial Mage, made Lucy swallow hard and shift nervously from foot to foot. “What…?”

“The Salamander has retreated into himself.” A gruff voice replied from behind them, and they turned to find that Gajeel and Levy had come to join them. The latter pressed so firmly against the Dragon-slayer’s side that it would have been impossible to even slip a sheet of paper between them, not that Gajeel seemed to be complaining, with his arm slung protectively around his mate.

 “What do you mean?” Mira demanded, glancing back at where Gray was still desperately talking to Natsu in a low voice before turning back to look at Gajeel. She could see the concern and fear in the crimson eyes as he followed her gaze, and also glanced at the pair, and that frightened her more than anything because the Iron Dragon-slayer only ever looked like that when things were at their worst.

“I’m guessing that when Gray fell, Natsu-san’s human part retreated allowing the Dragon to take over,” Wendy was the one to reply, her voice soft and barely above a whisper, a shiver working its way through her as she remembered the sensation of her own draconic side surging to the front in response to Natsu’s grief. It had been a terrifying sensation, feelings that weren’t entirely her own seizing hold of her and dictating her actions, and she couldn’t imagine how Natsu must be feeling if he was buried beneath the power of his own Dragon.

“Wait, so something did happen to Gray?” Lucy demanded, her eyes darting back to the Ice mage and raking him over to check that he wasn’t hiding anything more serious than the injuries they could currently see. _Gray…_

“According to Lyon and the others he took an attack that was meant for Juvia,” Levy explained quietly, tightly squeezing Gajeel’s hand as though to reassure herself that he was really there before continuing. "It was a fatal attack, as he took multiple blows including one through the head.”

“Then how…” Lucy muttered, and then her eyes widened in understanding as she recalled the strange vision that had made her change her path, the shift that she had been starting to think might have been a dream. “That shift in time? But why doesn’t Natsu seem to be aware of the change?” Even if he had retreated into himself, the shift had given them a brief but unmistakable glimpse into the future, and yet it didn’t seem that he had even questioned what was happening.

“I think he was buried too deep by that point,” Gajeel replied, his voice gentler than any of them had ever heard it, and both Laxus and Wendy nodded in agreement at his words. It was the only way for Natsu to have avoided the same awareness that had seemingly washed over every other person in the battle, and they hated the thought that Natsu’s own magic had caused him to suffer much more than he had needed to.

“But surely having Gray standing right there in front of him would tell him that something has changed?” Mira asked in confusion, she could understand Natsu being stopped from detecting the shift in time. After all, if it wasn’t for the fact that they had all experienced it she might have doubted it herself, but to have physical proof right in front of him and yet to show no sign of realising the truth was something she didn’t understand, and she glanced back at the Dragon-Slayer. _Natsu, what is going on in that head of yours?_

“He’s probably afraid that it’s a trick,” Gajeel said with a frown. Knowing that if he was in the Salamander’s place that he would be terrified to trust something that went against what his inner dragon was saying. Especially about something like this, and with everything he’d been taught and told as a child telling him to trust that part of himself, and it had always seemed to him that Natsu was that much closer to his draconic side than the rest of them. “Can you imagine how much it would hurt if he trusted what was in front of him only to discover it was an illusion or something?” _It would kill me,_ he thought, pulling Levy closer and only just resisting the urge to growl at the others.

“But…” Lucy began to protest, only to trail off and shake her head helplessly. How on earth were they supposed to bring Natsu back to himself if he wasn’t even willing to give his own senses a chance? _Natsu, Gray, how do we fix this?_

“

“We have to trust in Gray,” Gajeel said firmly. “He’s brought Natsu back to himself before, so he can do it again.” He sounded certain, but there was a hint of doubt in his eyes as he shared a worried look with Wendy and Laxus, because while it was true, that time had been different because Natsu had known that Gray wasn’t dead.

****

   Natsu had wanted to howl with despair when the form of Atlas Flame had disappeared before his uncomprehending gaze, taking with him the easiest escape from the pain gnawing at his heart. Pain that seemed to swell with each breath he took in a world without his mate. He was vaguely aware that another, much smaller figure had appeared in front of him, but he couldn’t find it in himself to focus on them. A small part of his mind guessing that it was one of his guildmates now that the battle was over, and he found himself retreating ever deeper, terrified of what they might try to say to him to stop what path he had to take. _I’m sorry…_

“…and go away for a vacation? A holiday just for the two of us….”

   He froze in his efforts to escape deeper into his own mind when quiet words drifted through the haze that had settled over his thoughts, and something stirred in the back of his mind. A warmth bursting in the darkness where the bond had once bee, and he took a shuddering breath because he knew that voice, knew it better than he knew his own. _But how?_ How could that be possible? His inner dragon was howling, trying to draw him away from the teasing flicker of hope but despite that he could feel it pulling on him, and despite his fears he let a little bit of awareness creep back, ready to retreat the second he detected that even something was even slightly out of place.

Waiting for the lie.

_Gray is gone._

**

    Gray made a soft noise that was somewhere between a broken sob, and a laugh of relief when something finally flickered in the depths of Natsu’s eyes, a little bit of olive-green mingling with the amber. It wasn’t quite recognition or even awareness, but there was a hint of life in them that had been missing seconds before, and taking a deep breath, he let himself hope that maybe, just maybe he was starting to get through to his mate.

“Natsu?” He asked, voice soft, and very slowly the Dragon-slayer blinked, and he watched, quivering through hope and fear as Natsu’s eyes began to focus on his face. He found himself holding his breath, not daring to move or make more noise, terrified that the slightest wrong move on his part might send Natsu fleeing back inside the shell he had built around himself.

 “G-Gr…ay?” Natsu whispered disbelievingly as he gazed into painfully familiar dark eyes, noting the pain and fear whirling in them and instinctively wanting to chase those emotions away and let the glint of hope buried beneath them come to the forefront. Unconsciously he raised a trembling hand, and Gray stilled at the gesture, forcing an encouraging smile as Natsu reached out warily towards him, hesitating for a moment before closing the last of the gap between them and brushing his too-warm fingers against the Ice Mage’s cheek.

   Startled to find chilled flesh beneath his touch Natsu snatched his hand back with a sharp cry, only to freeze as a cold hand grabbed hold of it and held on tightly preventing him from retreating completely. The Dragon-slayer let out a low whine of distress when he realised he couldn’t escape, and his dazed eyes were darting wildly around trying to find an escape route and refusing to focus on the one holding him in place. Terrified that if he did it would reveal that it was all an illusion, and unable to bear the thought of losing Gray all over again if that was the case.

“Damn it Natsu!!” Gray cried out, knowing that the longer it took to get through to Natsu the more chance there was of losing the Dragon-Slayer, it had been close on Tenroujima, but back then Natsu had wanted to come back. This time the Fire mage wasn’t sure if there was something to come back to. “Look at me! Smell me! Hear me! Use those Dragon-Slayer senses you’re so proud of!” He knew he was being harsh, but he would have time to be gentle once he’d got Natsu to actually realise he was still here with him.

 _“Look at me! Smell me! Hear me! Use those Dragon-Slayer senses you’re so proud of!”_ Natsu blinked as the barked order broke through his hazy mind, and despite his own doubts, he found himself obeying as he heard the pain underlying the voice that had shouted it. He had already touched and seen the mage holding onto him, and it was the voice that had drawn him out, and yet he knew that those aspects were the easiest to be copied, either by another mage or his own mind. But scent, scent was harder to imitate.

   Slowly he took a cautious sniff of the air, waiting for his nose to be assailed by a scent that would cause this illusion to come crashing down around him. Instead a second later his senses were flooded by the scent that was uniquely Gray. The smell of fresh snow and winter pine, underlain by his own deeper ashy scent that had become intimately interwoven with Gray’s scent shortly after he had gone into season. It was the scent of home, and fresh tears prickled at his eyes as he realised that no one could imitate this scent to that level.

“G-Gray?” Natsu blinked again as he finally managed to force his voice past suddenly frozen lips, and slowly his gaze drifted up to meet the Ice Mage’s. Gray wanted to weep with relief when awareness began to seep back into the unnatural amber eyes. Instead, he forced himself to stay calm as the Dragon-Slayer’s eyes focused on him properly. “Gray? But, but…Gray?” Confusion and pain swirled in his voice, but what Gray seized onto was the brief flicker of desperate hope that passed across Natsu’s face as the Fire Mage stilled in his attempts to escape.

“Yeah I’m here Natsu, I’m here,” Gray murmured as he blinked rapidly in an attempt to hold back the tears that were threatening to burst free at any moment, knowing that if he fell apart now, there was still a chance he would lose his mate.

“I lost you,” Natsu whimpered out, sounding and looking incredibly child-like as he stared at Gray with huge, teary eyes. Despite that Gray felt hope bubbling up in his chest as he saw the amber in his mate’s eyes slowly beginning to fade back to the usual olive colour, while the hand he was still clinging to was slowly losing its scaly covering. “I lost you. It was dark, and you w..weren’t there…I lost you,” Natsu was rambling now, a lost expression on his face as his tears began to trickle down his cheeks once more.

“Only for a minute,” Gray murmured softly and slowly he stepped forward even as he pulled the confused Dragon-slayer towards himself, wrapping his arms tightly around the other as they met in the middle and wincing as the other stiffened in his embrace. Still, he made no move to lessen his hold on the other teen, and every so slowly he felt Natsu beginning to relax into the hug.

**

“He did it, he got through to him,” Wendy breathed in relief as she watched the pair embrace, finally losing control of her own tears although she made no move to brush them aside as they trickled down her cheeks. Glancing down she was startled to find that her hands were trembling violently, and she realised just how much she had feared that she was about to lose them both and this time she couldn’t hold back a sob.

“Easy short-stuff,” Gajeel said soothingly moving across to her side and resting a gentle hand on her head, Levy had followed, and after offering her a comforting smile, the Solid-script mage pulled the younger girl into a gentle hug. The offered comfort broke down the last of her resistance and Wendy began to quietly sob as she pressed further into the hug.

“Will Natsu be okay now?” Lucy asked softly, her own eyes brimming with tears as she watched Natsu and Gray who were showing no signs of breaking apart any time soon.

“It’ll take a while,” Gajeel replied grimly glancing across at her, deciding that she didn’t need to know that they would be lucky if Natsu ever fully recovered from what had happened. The pain of losing a Mate wasn’t something that could be easily forgotten, and his eyes darted back to Levy at that thought, the events of the day making his usual protectiveness rise tenfold. _If it had been her, could I have come back?_  He honestly wasn’t sure, and lifting his head he briefly met Laxus’ gaze, and the other man had a solemn expression on his face, as though he knew exactly what Gajeel was thinking, and what he hadn’t said to the others.

 “It’s Natsu,” Laxus declared, as he looked away first and glanced at Lucy who looked somewhat startled as the sheer amount of faith in his voice before a wan smile crept onto her face. _Yes, this was Natsu._ She took a deep breath before nodding. Yes, this was Nastu. Natsu, who had always pulled through the impossible before, she just had to believe that he could do the same this time.

**

   Gray had been unsurprised, although still concerned when Natsu had slumped against him a short while later, quickly moving to support his mate. However, it wasn’t enough contact for either of them and taking a deep breath he carefully lifted Natsu into his arms, cradling him close despite the way that it pulled on his own injuries. _He’s okay._ His grip tightened, fingers brushing against the Dragon-slayer and soothing him as he stirred at the movement, murmuring uneasily under his breath, before he curled closer, pressing his head against Gray’s chest. It was a move he had done a hundred times before, pressing his ear against where the Ice Mage’s heart was beating in his chest, returning to a steady rhythm as his terror faded, and Natsu sighed, drawing strength and comfort from the sound that he had thought that he would never hear again.

     Gray gave him a couple of minutes, feeling the lingering tension even as Natsu practically melted against him, and honestly, he needed that time too. It had been too close, far too close, and it took him more attempts than he cared to admit, to find his voice again. “Natsu?” He murmured, frowning at the lack of response as he knew that Natsu wasn’t asleep just yet, and he jostled the Dragon-slayer carefully, mindful of his injuries. “Natsu, are you still with me?” He allowed his anxiety to bleed through this time, needing to make sure that this exhaustion wasn’t anything more serious than the Dragon-slayer’s wounds finally catching up with him. They were severe enough on their own, but after the way their luck had been going, he had to be sure.

“Hmm?” Natsu mumbled, fingers clutching at Gray as he roused enough to peer up at the Ice Mage with bleary eyes, and it was obvious that he was struggling to stay awake now, let alone focus, but still, he tried for Gray’s sake. “I’m okay, just…tired,” he managed to say after a moment, once it registered what Gray was asking, unable to stop his voice from wavering, and he knew that Gray would’ve heard it too, and sure enough the arms holding him close tensed. It wasn’t a lie exactly, because he was exhausted in a way that he had never felt before, but nor was it the whole truth and he worried at his bottom lip, waiting for Gray to broach the topic.

“Sure, you are,” Gray said instead after a long moment, and it was clear from his tone that he didn’t believe the Dragon-slayer one little bit. However, he seemed willing to leave the topic alone for the time being, and Natsu was relieved that he wasn’t pushing it any further right now, although even as exhausted as he was, he knew that they would have to talk about it sooner rather than later. Just as he knew that he was nowhere near being all right, as even the fact that Gray was here, alive and wonderfully real, was doing little against the weight of the remembered pain and darkness that still lingered in his thoughts. But there was no way he was ready to discuss that yet, recoiling at the mere thought of it, and he closed his eyes as he leant against Gray. All he wanted to do right now was be close to his mate, and try to forget even briefly the terrifying time where he had thought that he had lost everything.

 “Gray…” _Please_

“Shh, I get it,” Gray shushed him gently, hearing the silent plea even as he cut across the hesitant words, one hand moving to gently guide Natsu’s head back to its previous position above his heart, lips quirking as Natsu willingly followed his lead. “Rest easy, I’ll look after it.” It was a promise that went beyond just holding him like this, or making sure that his physical wounds were taken care of, and they both knew it. Natsu wanted to protest, after all, he was the one that should be looking after Gray, especially having come so close to losing him, but he couldn’t find the strength to argue with his mate.

     Instead, the steady beat of Gray’s heartbeat beneath his ear was a like a siren song, and he found himself pressing even closer to it, closing his eyes as he let it swell, until it filled his word. _He’s alive. He’s okay, and he’s here…_ He was drifting, carried away by the sound and the sheer relief of having his mate back, losing himself in a hazy, half-asleep state, where he couldn’t even react as he felt Gray staggering to his feet with him still cradled in his arms, and beginning to move.

**

     The group had been watching and waiting for this moment after watching the Ice Mage lift Natsu, and as they saw him beginning to head in their direction with Natsu cradled in his arms they stirred. It had been terrifying to see the Dragon-slayer collapse, especially after everything that had happened, and it had only been the lack of outright panic in Gray’s reaction and the fact that Natsu had clearly been responding to the Ice Mage that had allowed them to hold back. However, they were all keen to check on the pair for themselves, and Lucy was the first to move, trying to step forward to meet them as Gray approached.

 “Stay back,” Gajeel cautioned reaching out to stop the Celestial mage with a surprisingly gentle hand, before glancing around warningly at the others, who shifted uneasily under his gaze. “Natsu won’t react well to others being too close at the moment, so you need to give him some space for the time being,” he explained seeing the question in their eyes.  While they nodded reluctantly to show they understood, he could see the hurt, and the worry and he knew just how hard it was for them to stand back when their friends were in pain. However, he couldn’t get Natsu’s haunting, pain-filled cry out of his head, and he had to do anything he could to make sure that the other Dragon-slayer didn’t have to endure anything else right now.

 “What about his injuries?” Laxus asked, tilting his head towards Natsu, and making no effort to mask his concern as he studied the barely conscious Dragon-slayer. Even at this distance, it was clear that Natsu was in dire need of medical attention, and to be honest Gray didn’t look much better. “They both look like they could use Wendy’s help, especially Natsu.” Wendy had finally pulled herself away from Levy and Gajeel and was in the process of trying to wipe away the evidence of her tears when she shook her head.

 “I doubt he’ll even let me close at the moment,” she replied, making no attempt to move closer as Gray drew level to them, although her hands fell away from her face, twitching at her side as she fought against the urge to reach out and heal them.

 “I’m taking Natsu back to the inn, if it’s still standing,” Gray had finally reached them, arms tightening around Natsu as he paused to look at them, and they found themselves unable to argue in the face of the raw emotions in his expression. There was pain, and lingering fear and anger there, although his eyes were undeniably tender as he glanced down at Natsu who had started to stir as he picked up on the fact that they were there, and far too close to his mate after everything that had happened.

“Understood,” Gajeel was the one to reply, eyes narrowing as he spotted the movement. “Get him out of here, and we’ll see you both later.” He added with increased urgency, unsurprised when Natsu growled weakly a moment later, and he immediately reached out to grab Levy and pull her back a few steps, even though he knew that Natsu wasn’t really a threat in his current condition.

     The low growl was enough to jolt the Ice Mage back into motion, and with a sharp nod of acknowledgement in Gajeel’s direction, he moved away from them, picking up his pace as another low growl vibrated against his skin. And as they watched him hurrying away, they could see that he had ducked his head closer to Natsu’s, guessing that he was doing what he could to settle his draconic side. They couldn’t resist glancing at the other Dragon-slayer’s in question, still worried about leaving the pair alone, but the three of them glanced away and refused to say anything, knowing that the last thing either Natsu or Gray needed at the moment was an intrusion on any aspect of their bond.

****

   The journey back to the inn had taken Gray much longer than he had expected, partly because of the destruction that had been wrought on the city during the battle, but also due to exhaustion that had begun to creep through him, and the leaden weight in his arms. Now that he was no longer solely focused on stopping Natsu from disappearing, he couldn’t hide from his own injuries, and his entire body was a throbbing mass of aches and pains at this point. The previous wounds from the finale of the games, providing a dull background ache to the sharper stabs of pain from the newer injuries, and overlaying that, was the eerie, haunting memory of the blasts that had stolen his life away in that brief other future. The wounds weren’t there, but the memory of the pain remained, and more than once he found himself having to fight the urge to look down and check that they hadn’t reappeared, and somehow he had a feeling that he would be doing that for a while.

    However, despite the pain, and the exhaustion that was nipping his heels, he didn’t allow himself to falter, knowing that he was the only one that Natsu would allow close at the moment. That knowledge and the fact that Natsu needed gave him strength, and it was easier to focus on the still from cradled against his chest, basking in the warmth of his mate, than his own pain and the weight of what had happened.

    Still, it was a relief when the inn finally came into sight, especially as a small part of him had been worried that it would have been destroyed during the battle.  Not that it had been completely spared he realised as he got closer, as all the lower windows had been shattered beyond repair, and one wall showed scorching although whatever had caused it, hadn’t set fire to the entire building. For which he would be eternally grateful, as he wasn’t sure what he would’ve done if they’d had to find somewhere else, and ignoring the fact that it seemed abandoned, with even the owner having fled during the battle he entered. He had to be mindful of the glass covering the ground, wincing as it crunched loudly beneath his feet, surprised that Natsu’s only reaction to the noise that had to be hurting his sensitive ears was to tighten his grip slightly.

     It was a little eerie seeing the inn that had been so warm and lively before this, now completely empty, but he was also relieved that no one else seemed to have beaten him back. In part because he wasn’t sure that he was up to dealing with company right now, not least because he felt like he could sleep for a whole year right now, but he also knew that Natsu wouldn’t react well to anyone else being too close at the moment even if they were friends or family. Still, he knew that the peace would be short-lived because he had seen the concern in their friend's eyes as he’d left, and see that Gajeel had apparently said something to them as they had looked to him for answers. However, as much as he knew the other Dragon-slayers and Levy would do their best to give them as much time as possible for Natsu to find his bearings again, he knew that it would only work for so long, before someone – probably Erza or Lucy would insist on seeking them out.

    Upstairs he was pleased to find that the destruction hadn’t reached this far, and with the floor no longer covered in rubble and glass, he dug a last bit of strength to speed towards the room that he and Natsu were haring. Fortunately, the door opened easily enough beneath his fumbling efforts, and for once he was grateful for his mate’s inability to remember that he had to lock the door. Living out in the middle of nowhere had given Natsu the bad habit of leaving everything unlocked, even when he wasn’t at home, and it was a habit that Gray still hadn’t managed to break him out of.

*

    Inside he gently settled Natsu onto their bed, coming up short for a moment as he realised that the Dragon-slayer had passed out at some point, although he was relieved to realise that his mate looked a little more peaceful like this. He paused, taking the time to brush Natsu’s sweat-drenched hair away from his face, before caressing a pale cheek with trembling fingers, still trying to convince himself that Natsu was still really there with him. _It was too close._ Not ready to deal with that thought, and the baggage it carried with him, he forced himself to pull away and head for the small bathroom to dig out the small medical kit he had insisted they take with them after realising just how often Natsu got injured on jobs. In an ideal world he knew that Natsu would get proper healing straight away, but even without Natsu awake to tell him, he knew that his mate wouldn’t allow anyone else close enough to heal him at the moment.

    Usually, Gray would have pushed the issue, but after today he was willing to indulge the Dragon-slayer, although he had every intention of dragging Natsu to see either Wendy or Porlyusica as soon as he could. There was a small voice in the back of his mind that admitted that it wasn’t just for Natsu’s sake that he was holding off, wanting, or rather needing the chance to take care of his mate himself, even if he could only do a temporary patch-up job.

    Finally finding the medical kit, he hurried back to the bedroom, somewhat disappointed to see that Natsu had stirred in the slightest while he was gone. Although he realised that was probably for the best right now, as even a brief glance was enough to tell him that the Dragon-slayer’s injuries were serious, with more damage probably hidden from sight and that Natsu would’ve been in a lot of pain if he was conscious while Gray worked. Still, he would have preferred to see some sign that Natsu was still with him, and he had to fight the urge to reach out and try to rouse him anyway. Instead, he busied himself with laying out the kit on the bed next to his mate, and taking a deep breath before he started, reaching out first to remove the purple cloth that had been wrapped around his mate’s waist, eyes narrowing as he found further bandaging underneath.

     He moved slower now, cautious as he eased the rough bandaging away, and hissing in sympathy as they caught in places, before slowly revealing the deep, gash-like wounds that lay beneath. He faltered for a second then, expression darkening as he realised that these injuries alone could have been enough to steal Natsu away from him. _Even if I hadn’t seen him willingly waiting for a Dragon to kill him._ The reminder brought bile to his mouth, and he had to pause and take a shuddering breath to steady himself before he could even begin to work on the deep cuts, and even then he couldn’t keep the tremble from his fingers as he worked.

 “Who did this to you?” He demanded, his voice barely more than a snarl as he worked slowly and methodically to remove all traces of dirt from the cuts and the area around them. Ideally, they could both do with a proper bath, but he knew that it was more important for Natsu to rest right now, so his ministrations would have to do until later. The methodical work also helped to calm his anger a little, although he still itched to know who had done this so that he could make them pay, even though he knew that Natsu had probably already dealt with it.

   Once he was satisfied that they were as clean as he could get them and vowing to make Wendy look at them no matter how much Natsu protested, he carefully began to wind fresh bandages around them. Stilling when Natsu twitched beneath his touch, his forehead furrowing as pain passed briefly across his face before he settled once more, and Gray was slower as he continued, trying to do everything he could to make sure that he didn't cause the Dragon-slayer any more pain. Once he was satisfied that the would hold out until he could convince Natsu to let someone else look at them, he turned his attention to the other, less severe injuries covering his mate, anger building as he realised that there was no part of Natsu that wasn’t at least bruised.

_Natsu…_

    At any other time, he would have been at least mildly impressed, knowing that a lesser mage would’ve been taken out of the fight by even half of these injuries, whereas Natsu had fought until the very end, and even managed to pull a victory out of the bag despite the odds against them. However, it was hard to feel anything beyond worry and anger right now, especially as he knew a large part of Natsu’s ability to keep going had come from the demands that were placed on the Dragon-slayer by his draconic side. Natsu hadn’t been able to stop, because his draconic side had demanded that he keep going, that he kept fighting until he could avenge his mate, and as Gray resumed his ministrations, he felt the old irritation at those demands coming back with a vengeance. Only it was worse than usual because today he had been confronted by just how far Natsu was willing to go to meet those demands, and how close Gray had come to losing him because of that, and he was forced to halt for a moment as his temper bubbled up, unwilling to risk hurting the other teen even further.

*:

    By the time that Gray had completely finished tending Natsu’s injuries, he was drooping from exhaustion, the pain that he had been ignoring now a dull, roaring in the back of his mind that he couldn’t ignore. However, as much as he wanted nothing more than to climb into the bed and curl around his mate and sleep until this nightmare was over, he knew that he couldn’t neglect his own injuries, nor did he fancy facing the backlash he would face if he did. Still, it was with a great deal of reluctance that he turned his attention to his own wounds, slowly unworking the old bandages from when he had been treated in the infirmary after the final group battle. Not that there was much left of them at this point, as most of them had been reduced to useless scraps of fabric during the fighting, and he winced as he pulled them past injuries old and new.

    He couldn’t help but glance towards the mirror once they were off, grimacing as he realised that his entire body was a painful looking tapestry of cuts and colourful bruises, and he knew that it was going to hurt to move for a while. It wasn’t as easy to look away as it should have been, and he found his gaze lingering on the spots where he knew that the attacks that he had taken for Juvia had struck, his hands shaking as he pressed against each place, needing the confirmation that they weren’t really there after everything that had happened. However, finally, he shook his head at his own foolishness, after all, what was the point of worrying about injuries that didn’t even exist anymore?

_I’m alive, and that’s all that matters._

    His hands were somewhat steadier as he set to work against, clinging to that thought as he cleaned them out, carefully biting back any noises of pain so that he wouldn’t disturb Natsu, or give the Dragon-slayer any more reasons to worry about him. He didn’t spend as long as he had with Natsu, cleaning them brusquely and then carefully rebinding the more serious wounds, although he had made a noise then, having to contort himself into awkward positions to get to some of them. However, reaching out to someone else for help at the moment, knowing that Natsu couldn’t be left alone for now, and shuddering as he imagined how his mate would react if he woke up and there was no sign of him., Crocus probably wouldn’t survive the outburst, and the last thing Natsu needed was that kind of stress. Still, he was incredibly relieved when he was finally finished, slumping for a moment as he rode out the pain that his efforts had caused.

   Eventually, the pain settled into the background once more, although he knew that it would probably hurt more come morning once the stiffness had settled in too. Still, for now, he could breathe easier and wearily he forced himself back to his feet, tidying up the remnants of their medical supplies and dumping them on the bedside table in case they were needed later. Then with heavy steps he went and locked the door, wanting to make sure that no one could burst in on them, even if it were just their well-meaning friends. Now that he was no longer focused on their injuries, he realised that he hadn’t heard any noise that would indicate that he others had come back yet, and he felt a brief flicker of guilt as he realised that it probably meant that they were out there helping out with the clean-up.

    However, as he glanced back at Natsu, he realised that nothing would make him regret his current position and actions, and with a last glance at the door he turned and padded back towards the bed as fast as his protesting body would allow. Natsu was the only thing that mattered at the moment.

    It was with a profound feeling of relief that he finally slipped into the bed next to the Dragon-slayer, his exhaustion hitting him like a cresting wave, and his eyes were threatening to close the moment his head hit the pillow. With the last bit of energy, he could summon he managed to shift himself across the bed, curling himself loosely around Natsu, aware that they were both too injured to press much closer at the moment, before pulling the covers over them. Natsu stirred a little at that, making a small noise as his head lolled towards Gray, instinctively seeking out his mate as distress passed over his face, and the Ice Mage immediately reached for the hand lying closest to him.

 “I love you,” he whispered as he loosely intertwined their fingers watching as Natsu’s expression smoothed out almost immediately at the gentle touch. Feeling warm fingers curling weakly around his, he let his eyes close as sleep tugged at him, and before he was gone before he was aware of it.

****

   Gray was roused from his exhausted sleep as the bed dipped suddenly, the warm body that had been loosely curled around him, now moving restlessly. Half-asleep he didn’t register it at first as he blearily forced his eyes open with a growl on his lips, fully prepared to lambast whoever had decided to wake him up when it still felt like he could sleep for a year. However, as he turned to seek out the disturbance, his anger melted away into concern as his gaze landed on Natsu who was twisting in his sleep, his face shadowed with an echo of the same pain and grief that had been there earlier, and all traces of sleep immediately disappeared. “Natsu…”

“G-Gray… Gray,” Natsu hadn’t reacted to his voice, head tossing from side to side as he started to call for his mate, his expression becoming more and more distressed by the second, and Gray quickly scooted across to him. Cursing as he realised that at some point they had drifted apart while they were asleep, realising that was probably why the nightmare had slipped through at this point, although he had known that they were probably inevitable at this point. Despite his earlier worries about their wounds if they curled too closely together, he knew that there was no way he was going to be able to calm Natsu at this point without holding him, and so as soon as he was within reach he wrapped his arms around the Dragon-slayer with the utmost care.

 “Natsu I’m right here,” he murmured into the closest ear, feeling the tremors that were beginning to work their way through the warm body in his arms. “I’m here, and we’re both all right now,” he added, squeezing lightly in the hopes of getting Natsu to realise that he was there. When the Dragon-slayer continued to twist and turn in his arms, his expression contorting as whatever nightmares were plaguing him dug their claws in even deeper. “Natsu! Natsu wake up! Please, wake up,” his orders became a plea as he gently shook Natsu, realising that the Dragon-slayer wasn’t going to make it easy for him, his grip tightening as he tried to pull Natsu back into the waking world.

 “GRAY!” Natsu cried out in terror a couple of minutes later as his eyes shot open, and Gray winced at the pain and fear in the other’s eyes as they rose to meet his gaze. With a barely muffled sob, Natsu closed the slight gap between them, wrapping his arms so tightly around Gray that the Ice Mage winced as his wounds protested the contact, but there was no way he was going to voice a protest. Not when he could feel dampness soaking into the bandages that were level with where Natsu’s face was, and the bond between them was humming with such pain that he could feel his own eyes beginning to burn. Was this how Natsu had felt when he thought Gray was gone?

“Shh I’m here, I’m here,” he murmured as he pressed the Dragon-slayer tighter against his chest, both hands roaming over the Natsu’s back, unsure of whether he was just trying to reassure Natsu or himself as well.

“You’re safe?” Natsu asked almost desperately, and Gray realised that while he had managed to bring the Dragon-Slayer back to himself earlier, he hadn’t entirely succeeded in driving the doubts and fears from the Natsu’s mind. He doubted very much that they would ever disappear entirely now that Natsu had been forced to experience that pain, but he hoped that in time they would at least fade into the background, but for now all he could do was reassure the Dragon-slayer and hope that at least some of his words penetrated.

“I’m safe, you made sure of that,” Gray said reassuringly. With everything that had happened he hadn’t had the opportunity to talk to the others and find out exactly what had happened, but just seeing the sheer level of destruction around the Eclipse Gate was enough to tell him that Natsu had been involved. He knew without a doubt that it had been his Dragon-slayer that had saved the day. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem as though Natsu was as convinced of that fact as he was. “You saved all of us,” he added softly, and Natsu made a quiet noise of denial before pressing his face against the Ice Mage’s chest.

“That wasn’t what I was trying to do,” Natsu admitted in a quiet voice and Gray had to strain to hear the words that were being muffled by the Dragon-slayer’s current position, but he made no attempt to move Natsu, knowing that he needed the contact. “I just wanted them to pay…I wanted them to hurt…to hurt as much as I…” Natsu trailed off unable to continue, a violent shudder going through him and Gray tensed as he felt the bond between them clouding over and he knew that Natsu was losing himself to the memory of when he thought Gray was dead.

“You wanted them to hurt as much as you were hurting?” He asked softly, relieved when the advancing darkness halted at his words, noting that Natsu had tensed against his chest and he guessed that the Dragon-slayer was expecting to be scolded for his words. “Do you think that I would have been any different?” He asked calmly, and cautiously Natsu withdrew from his hiding place to peer up at him with confused eyes, and the Ice Mage winced as he took in the red rims, and the wet trails marring the pale cheeks. _Damn it, I don’t want to see your tears anymore,_ he thought to himself before reaching up to brush gently at the tear tracks, desperate to ease if not erase the other’s pain.

“What do you mean?”

“If I had been in your shoes. If I believed that you were d..gone,” Gray hesitated for a second, unable to even voice the idea of Natsu being dead and he felt warm arms tightening their hold on him, and he drew strength from that. “Then I would have done exactly what you did.” There was no hesitance in the last bit of his statement, only grim certainty and a solemn promise.

   He knew without a doubt that if Natsu had fallen in this battle, or if he ever fell in a future battle then there would be nothing that could hold him back from completely destroying whoever had dared to hurt his mate. He might lack the draconic instincts that often drove Natsu’s reactions to events involving their bond, but he was honest enough with himself to acknowledge that he had more than a hint of darkness in himself, and it was Natsu that kept him human. Without that… he was startled out of his darkening thoughts by a gentle hand coming to rest on his cheek, and he blinked, surprised to find Natsu watching him with a tender expression before realising that he had inadvertently been letting his feelings seep openly through the bond.

“Thank you,” Natsu murmured before burrowing back against the Ice Mage, and Gray could hear the unspoken meanings behind the simple words.

_Thank you for surviving._

_Thank you for bringing me back._

_Thank you for being here and understanding what I did…_

 “Natsu,” he sighed with a shake of his head. “That isn’t something you have to thank me for,” he scolded gently with no heat in his voice, relieved as he felt the bond beginning to settle, indicating that at least nor now Natsu was letting his words in. There was a wealth of words that he could say, and he knew that sooner or later he would need to say them as this reprieve was likely to be short-lived, but for now, he was content to just hold Natsu close and give the Dragon-slayer the opportunity to try and sort himself out.

*

   A soft noise broke the comfortable silence that had settled over them, and Gray glanced down curiously, a tender smile curling his lips as he realised that Natsu had given in to the pull of his exhaustion and injuries. Careful not to disturb him, he reached down to card his fingers through messy, pink hair, the Dragon-slayer letting out a small noise of contentment as he lent into the touch, and pressed closer to Gray. The Ice Mage wasn’t naïve enough to think that this meant that the situation was resolved, and he knew without a doubt that they still had some more serious discussions to come. The image of Natsu kneeling before the Fire Dragon, calmly waiting for a blow that would undoubtedly have been fatal played through his mind once more, and he hastily pushed it away, not wanting his own distress to seep back into the bond and disturb Natsu.

 “You’re still here, and so I am. That’s all that matters for now,” he whispered to the sleeping Dragon-slayer, forcing himself to focus entirely on that thought because for the time being that was really all that mattered. Anything else could be dealt with when they were no longer reeling from the events that had nearly torn them apart.

    Carefully he eased himself down until he was lying down face-to-face with the Dragon-slayer, shifting over so that they were tightly pressed against one another, knowing that distance was more dangerous than their injuries at this point. Leaning forward to press a chaste kiss to Natsu’s forehead, lingering for a moment before he curled around his mate so that his head could rest against the Dragon-slayer’s which was now pressed into his chest.  “Natsu,” he breathed before his eyes closed again and he to drift off, physically and emotionally exhausted, using the warm presence in his arms to anchor himself as he followed the Dragon-slayer back into sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

 

    They were well into the next morning by the time Gray was finally able to rouse himself properly, pushing himself upright a groan as his body promptly reminded him of everything that he had put it through the day before. It didn’t help that it felt like he’d barely managed to get any sleep whatsoever, as the entire night had been punctuated with nightmares, from both of them, and he could already feel his eyes beginning to droop, practically begging him to go back to sleep. And the mere thought of getting up was enough to make him want to cry right then, but he knew that they couldn’t sleep forever, not least because the others must be worried sick about the pair of them. If he was honest, he was just as worried about them as well, because there hadn’t been a chance to check that everyone was okay after everything had happened. Especially had he had been utterly focused on Natsu and what was happening with his mate, something that he was now feeling a little guilty about, although he didn’t regret it, especially as he tilted his head to peer down at Natsu.

    The Dragon-slayer was curled up against him in a position that couldn’t be doing his injuries any good and pressed so tightly against Gray that you could slip a piece of paper between them. His head was nestled against Gray’s shoulder, and he was clinging to the Ice Mage’s with a desperation that bled through even in sleep. What little he could see of Natsu’s face from this angle showed that he was paler than usual and that his forehead was furrowed, and Gray paused for a moment before shifting a little, just testing. Sure enough, Natsu properly mumbled something under his breath, the frown deepening even as his grip of Gray tightened. Stopping him from disappearing again. It wasn’t that surprising after the way Natsu had been acting whenever either of them had woken from nightmares, but it confirmed his suspicions that his mate was going to be reluctant to let him out of his sight for the foreseeable future. And if he was honest, Gray completely shared the sentiment, unable to stop the shiver that ran down his back as his thoughts drifted to just how close he had come to losing this.

_I could have lost him…_

    It would be a long time, if ever before he forgot that kind of terror and he swallowed, studying Natsu, drinking in the fact that he was here and alive. He wasn’t sure whether it was because he’d moved, or whether Natsu had sensed his gaze, but the Dragon-slayer slowly stirred, grumbling out a protest as he struggled to coax his eyes open. For a moment, Gray thought it was a losing battle, catching a sliver of green before it disappeared once more, but eventually, blinking sleepily, Natsu managed to tilt his head up to peer at him. He started a little at finding Gray staring at him so intently, and a hint of colours bled into his cheeks, although he didn’t duck away from the gaze.

“Gray…?” He asked uncertainly when the moment stretched on without Gray saying anything, only to pout when the Ice mage relaxed with a soft huff of laughter, reaching out to brush fingers against Natsu’s cheek, lingering there until Natsu shifted and asked again. “Gray?”

“How are you feeling?” Gray asked, taking pity on the Dragon-slayer, the old amusement at how easier it was to fluster his Mate dimming as he realised that Natsu had yet to release the tight hold on him. Even though he would usually retreat at least a little when he was embarrassed. There was a pause as Natsu seemed to take stock of the situation, and Gray almost wished that he hadn’t asked as he saw the moment that the memory of what had happened hit the Dragon-slayer. Natsu’s expression darkened, remembered pain flickering across his face as what little colour he’d gained disappeared, and even as he cursed up a storm in his own thoughts, Gray’s voice was soft, soothing as he tried to calm him. “It’s okay Natsu, we’re okay. I’m okay.” He knew that the last part was the most important to the Dragon-slayer, unsurprised when Natsu pressed closer to him at his words, burrowing against his chest, trembling as he listened to the Ice Mage’s heartbeat.

     It was too much like that final desperate moment when Gray had been losing hope that he would be able to get through to Natsu, and he found himself returning the embrace just as tightly. _We’re okay. He’s okay._ It was a mantra in his thoughts, and he wasn’t sure whether it was his own frantic reminder or Natsu’s that had seeped into the bond between them, colouring it, until he wasn’t sure what was coming from him and what was coming from his mate. He supposed it didn’t really matter because they had both come close to losing everything yesterday.

_Too close._

        He wasn’t entirely sure how long they’d sat like that, just holding each other close. At least half-an-hour, or possibly more, before Natsu finally stirred in his arms, reluctantly pulling back enough to peer up at him. And Gray’s heart ached at the raw emotion in Natsu’s expression and the redness around his eyes. His gaze softening as he spied the lingering evidence of tears on Natsu’s cheeks before he reached up to brush them away with tender fingers, before leaning in and kissing his Mate’s forehead, feeling a burst of warmth through the bond. From the way Natsu was still clinging to him, he knew that Natsu would prefer to remain like this, just the two of them, reassuring themselves that they had survived. That the other had come back from the darkness that had nearly consumed them. If he were honest, he would’ve loved to stay like this, locked away from the rest of the world, until the memory of what had happened had faded a little, and the sting of loss had numbed a little, but he knew that the others must be worried about them. Besides, they both needed to eat something, and Natsu, in particular, required some proper healing, although he knew that the Dragon-slayer would say the same thing about him.

“Are you up for going downstairs for a bit?” He asked. He had been expecting Natsu to be unenthusiastic about the idea, but he hadn’t been prepared for the way that the Dragon-slayer had gone rigid in his arms, or for the burst of doubt and fear that exploded through the bond with such force that he felt his eyes water. It was like a wordless scream in the back of his mind, and blinking back the tears he narrowed his eyes, concerned not only by the response but also the sheer force of it, and he softened his voice as he tried to meet Natsu’s gaze. “Natsu?” The Dragon-slayer shook his head, trying to avoid his gaze, and he sighed. “Natsu, please talk to me.” He didn’t bother asking what was wrong, it was a moot question, the answer written in the bandages covering them both and, in the way, that Natsu was clinging to him, grip almost bruising.

“I don’t want to go downstairs,” Natsu muttered. Sounding almost child-like as he turned his head and buried it against the Ice Mage once more, and despite his concern which had only grown with that reply, Gray found himself smiling a little at the gesture even as he felt a pang at the Dragon-slayer’s childish need to cling to him. As though Gray would push him away or deny him. At the moment, it felt hard to imagine denying him anything, something that was at war with his need to make sure that Natsu’s injuries were looked at properly. “Please, I’m just not ready to face the others yet,” Natsu added as though sensing that he was wavering, still not removing his head from its hiding place. Gray hesitated, biting at his lip as he tried to work out the best thing to do, but his desire to push the issue was rapidly fading in the face of Natsu’s obvious reluctance. After everything that had happened, and with Natsu clearly still a little too close to falling back over that edge, he was reluctant to do anything that might upset him further.

“Fine,” he agreed finally. “We’ll have to face then eventually,” he added in warning as Natsu lifted his head a little to look at him in surprise, clearly having expected him to argue that they should at least check in with the others, and he smiled slightly. “I’d rather just be here with you,” he admitted in response to the question in Natsu’s gaze, and for the first time since he’d woken, he got a weak smile from his partner.

“Thank you.” Natsu meant far more than just putting off going downstairs, and Gray shook his head, leaning in to kiss him, knowing that they both needed this just as much as the other. Natsu hummed into the kiss, before yawning widely as they pulled apart, looking a little sheepish as he asked. “Can we sleep a bit more then?” Gray was quick to agree, as the yawn proved to be contagious and he could still feel the previous day’s battle and the long, restless night weighing down on him. Part of him knew that they really needed to see about at least eating at some point too, somewhat surprised that his mate’s bottomless pit of stomach wasn’t rumbling. However, it seemed like a minor concern at the moment, especially with his own appetite ruined by the fear that he could still see lingering in Natsu’s eyes.

    It didn’t help that as they snuggled back down on the bed, Natsu made a soft noise of protest as they were forced to pull apart for a moment to find a more comfortable position, the sound accompanied by a brief flash of panic through the bond. Gray made soothing noises under his breath, as he worked as quickly as he could to rearrange their position to protect their injuries as best he could, and so that he could wrap his arms back around Natsu, drawing the Dragon-slayer close against him once more. The speed at which Natsu curled around him, and the relief colouring the bond had him frowning down at his mate with concern. What was it going to take to get Natsu back to his normal self? He wondered, knowing that it was too soon to expect that, but unable to entirely escape the thought that this might have further reaching consequences, the idea that there might be nothing that he could do to help also weighing heavily on him.

    It didn’t take long for Natsu to doze off once more, and although the speed at which he’d fallen asleep did give Gray some further concerns over his injuries, there was little he could do about it as even asleep Natsu was holding him tightly. _I’ll talk to him about at least letting Wendy in here later,_ he decided with a frown, glancing down at the Dragon-slayer. He’d half expected his whirling thoughts and emotions would keep him awake, but it didn’t take too long for his own exhaustion and the soothing warmth coming off Natsu to lull towards sleep. And as his eyes began to droop, he offered up a prayer that they might get a peaceful, dreamless sleep this time.

****

_“Natsu! NATSU!” He was screaming now, repeating his mate’s name, again and again, growing louder with each repetition and yet Natsu gave no sign of having heard him, let alone of listening to him. Terror flooding him as he watched the massive form of the Fire Dragon looming over the seemingly unaware form of the Dragon-slayer. “NATSU!” His voice was becoming choked with tears as he realised that there was no way he was going to be able to reach Natsu in time, the bond still closed to him, and Natsu blind and deaf to his presence._

_In sheer desperation, he slammed his hands together even as he continued to bolt towards Natsu, needing to do something, anything that might give him those few precious seconds he needed to reach Natsu’s side. However, even though he knew that he still had magic left, feeling it simmering beneath his skin, there wasn’t the slightest hint of ice as he brought his hands together, horror clawing at him at that realisation._

_“What…? Why? WHY?!” He choked out as he gazed down at his hands, the stinging in his eyes giving way to tears as nothing he did produced even so much as a chill in the air around him. He didn’t understand it, his magic had never failed him before, not like this, so why? Why was it failing him now, just when he needed it the most? “Please, please…I need to save him.” He pleaded, desperate enough to beg as his gaze turned back to Natsu, and it felt like his heart had frozen over, forgetting how to beat as he watched the Fire Dragon move. The giant foot that had been hovering so threateningly, now descending towards Natsu with devastating speed and force, with nothing and no one there to stop it, and he couldn’t breathe as he realised what was about to happen._

_“NOOOO!” He was barely aware of the fact that he was screaming, howling out his horror and grief as he stared at the space where Natsu had been only seconds before as the ground shook under the force of the impact. His legs gave out beneath him, leaving him to sink to the ground, his mind going blank as he was swept up into the terrifying voice that had opened up in his heart._

_Natsu? Natsu couldn’t be gone…he couldn’t…he…_

     Gray surged upright with a terrified cry still lingering on his lips, his heart pounding in his chest as he glanced around wildly, searching for the scene that only seconds before had played out in front of his helpless eyes. It took a few seconds for the haze to clear, and for the inn room to come into focus, and even then it took for a moment for his heart and mind to catch up with what happened, sucking in a breath that broke on a sob as he realised that it had just been a dream. _A nightmare,_ he corrected, the terror and grief still so vivid that he trembled under the force of it, and even the realisation that it hadn’t been real doing little to soothe him, and he could feel the tears from his dream trickling down his cheeks as another soft sob bubbled up.

It had been so real.

“Hmmm, Gray…?” The sleepy mumble that broke the silence made him start, having forgotten that he wasn’t alone, and he twisted to face the source, only to find himself frozen again as he found himself staring into sleepy, olive eyes. _Natsu._ Before he had fully registered the sight of his Mate, he was moving, throwing himself towards the Dragon-slayer and wrapping his arms around the half-awake Natsu and yanking him into a desperate, crushing hold, deaf to the whimper that his actions caused.

   For his part Natsu was still half-asleep and confused as to what was going on, just knowing that he was in a severe amount of pain and that Gray was currently sobbing into his shoulder and clinging to him as though he could disappear at any moment.

“Gray?” He asked, voice rising in alarm as he was hit with the emotions that surged through the bond at the sound of his voice, the force of it clearing the sleep from his mind, and he felt his own breath catch as the memories – both real and dreamt flooded his mind. _Gray…_ The darkness was still there, and it was tugging at him, but before he could lose himself, it or the memories that were still pouring through his mind Gray’s grip tightened, sending a fresh wave of pain through him. Part of him wanted to jerk away, biting his lip hard to hold back the cry of pain that threatened to escape, but there was no way he would pull away when his mate was like this, and instead, he refocused on Gray. “I’m here,” he murmured, barely managing to keep his voice even as his entire body throbbed. Still, he ignored it in favour of shifting himself upright until he was able to wrap his own arms around Gray.

“I-I was too late…” Gray whispered after a moment of sitting like that, and the Dragon-slayer couldn’t prevent the shiver that worked its way through him at those words. _Too late. I was too late,_ it echoed, resonating through him, and he felt nauseous as he recalled how that thought had consumed him at the time. He found himself unable to speak, despite his desire to comfort Gray, and instead, he found himself copying the Ice Mage and tightening his grip as he buried his nose in dark hair, trying to fill his senses with everything Gray. “If I had been even a few seconds later…”

“…I was,” Natsu’s voice was even fainter than Gray’s, but they were pressed so closely together that there was no way he could miss the words, and he shivered, cold for a different as he realised what his words had meant to the Dragon-slayer. He had nearly been too late, and he was being haunted by the ‘what ifs’, but Natsu had actually experienced the pain and guilt of being too late to save him, and there was a lump in his throat now.

 “I’m sorry, I…”

“Why are you apologising?” Natsu demanded, pulling away just enough to look at Gray with a confused expression. What did the Ice Mage have to apologise for? It hadn’t been his fault that he had been caught up in the battle, or that they had been separated, or that he had…died. A full-body shudder went through him at the mere thought of it, unable to stop the low, broken noise that rose in the back of his throat, certain that he would never be able to forget that moment. _I lost him, and I know that he’s here, but…it doesn’t change the fact that I was too late,_ he thought, missing the way Gray’s expression had darkened, but not the guilt that coloured his mate’s voice as he spoke.

“Because if I’d just been a little more careful, this could have been avoided,” Gray whispered, but even as he said the words, he knew that it wasn’t that simple. He had acted purely on instinct during the fight, moving to protect Juvia from the incoming attack before he’d even known what he was doing, and he hadn’t had the time to think about what it might do to Natsu. He wanted to believe that if he’d known beforehand the impact, his actions would have on the Dragon-slayer that he might have at least hesitated, but he knew that if he had then Juvia would be…

“No!” Natsu was quick to deny that claim, refusing to let Gray blame himself for what had happened or to absolve him for not being there to protect him. Shaking his head as Gray looked at him, startled by the force of his reply, before glancing down. “This is because I’m a Dragon-slayer, and because of the instincts that come with that. If I had been a normal mage, then none of this would have happened…”  He wouldn’t have known that Gray had fallen in the first place, let alone come apart at the seams to the point where he had been ready to let Atlas Flame… he shook his head. “It could have all been avoided…”

“But…” Gray hesitated. He was reluctant to accept such easy absolution, guilt lingering as he felt the tremors that were still working their way through Natsu, even though he wasn’t much better with the nightmare still on his mind. _I should have known,_ he thought. He had seen how Natsu had reacted to his near miss with Acnologia on Tenroujima, and that had been terrifying enough, and yet he hadn’t even considered how much worse Natsu’s reaction might be if he was seriously injured, or worse if he did die, and he swallowed. “Natsu…”

“What?” Natsu asked, nervous as he caught the hesitance in Gray’s voice, worry following as he caught the wild swirl of emotions coming through the bond from the Ice Mage, tensing when Gray met his gaze with intense eyes. “Gray?”

    Gray continued to hesitate even as he felt the worry that was radiating from the Dragon-slayer, not sure whether Natsu was really ready to talk about what had happened. Or if he was ready for the answer to the question that was now dominating his thoughts, but he knew that he was the one that had brought them to this point. And as Natsu continued to watch him nervously, he knew that if he backed off now, the Dragon-slayer would just worry himself sick about what hadn’t been said. “It’s about…it’s.” He stumbled over his words as he tried to force them out in a rush, and he sighed, before taking a deep breath. “Would you really have let that Dragon kill you?” He blurted out before he could start second-guessing himself again, holding Natsu’s gaze as he asked, seeing the way the Dragon-slayer’s eyes widened as he tensed, and he immediately regretted asking even though he knew they would need to broach the topic eventually. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked.”

“N-no, it’s fine,” Natsu replied slowly as he lowered his gaze, knowing that he wouldn’t be able to bear the expression his answer was going to put on Gray’s face, and not having the strength to face it as he nodded slowly. “I would have. I-I was going to,” he confessed quietly, unable to miss the shocked intake of breath and the tremor in the arms holding him as Gray caught the whispered words.

“Why?” There was no missing the pain and horror in Gray’s voice, and Natsu winced as he felt Gray’s fingers biting into his arms where the Ice Mage was clinging to him as though still terrified that he might disappear at any moment.

“I…” Natsu swallowed hard, as for the first time since Gray had brought him back to himself, he allowed his thoughts to drift fully back to the time when he had thought that Gray was gone. And this time he was the one to tremble as he recalled the void that had opened up inside him the moment he’d realised that his Mate was gone.  Even now with Gray in front of him, his inner dragon stirred nervously at the memory, and he had to take a deep breath, grounding himself in the smell of fresh snow and mountain air that Gray always let off to stop himself from falling apart all over again. “I couldn’t live in a world where you were gone. The second I felt you vanish part of me disappeared too… I wasn’t me…I wasn’t complete.” The words weren’t enough to describe the emptiness that had consumed him, the void that had replaced his heart, and he didn’t know if any existed.

“But to go that far,” Gray protested weakly, aching at the pain in Natsu’s voice as he described how he had felt when he thought that he was dead. “It’s…”

“It was instinct,” Natsu mumbled, remembering how he had managed to respond to Atlas Flame despite being lost in his grief, knowing instinctively what the Fire Dragon had been offering him. “As soon as I knew the ones responsible for your death were gone, there was no point anymore, and all I could focus on was finding my way back to you, and I couldn’t do that on my own…”

    Gray finally released the told hold that he’d had on Natsu since he’d woken, pulling back slightly, a roaring sound filling his ears as he stared at the Dragon-slayer as Natsu reluctantly gave him the space to move. Natsu’s words played on repeat in his mind, deafening even over the roaring sound, as he slowly realised the full impact of what Natsu had was saying,

“This is going to happen again, isn’t it?” He asked in a small voice, forcing himself to meet Natsu’s gaze as the Dragon-slayer reluctantly met his gaze. “If…no, when I die, you’re going to follow me aren’t you? Even if it’s natural, or it isn’t your time…?” It wasn’t really a question, because he knew the answer even before Natsu gave a tiny nod, and yet he still felt like the bottom of his stomach had dropped out at his mate’s answer., “I-If I hadn’t accepted the bond? Would that have changed all this?” _Would it have stopped you from being bound to me like this?_

“NO!!!” Natsu hadn’t meant to yell, but the denial burst out of him, terror shooting through him at what Gray was asking, and he lunged forwards and wrapped his arms around the Ice Mage. “N-no…Nonono…please don’t say that, please…” He couldn’t even summon enough rational thought to string a proper sentence together, let alone answer the question, because the thought of Gray having rejected him back then, and the terrifying idea that he might be thinking of walking away now had sent him into a wild spiral.

“Natsu! Natsu!” Gray shouted in alarm in an attempt to cut across the panicked words, cursing himself for speaking so carelessly. “It was just a question,” he added desperately. He should have known that there was no way that Natsu would be able to take that question calmly in his current condition, and probably even in his normal state he would have reacted badly. “I’m not going anywhere, I promise.” Realising that the words weren’t enough he returned Natsu’s desperate, bruising hug with his with own, eyes burning as he abandoned speaking and instead focused on pushing everything he felt for the Dragon-slayer through the bond as he felt Natsu shaking against him.

_I love you._

    It took a few minutes for it to break through Natsu’s panic, and he was sniffling as he slumped against Gray. “D-Don’t ever ask that,” the Dragon-slayer pleaded, leaning into the Ice mage, feeling the love and comfort that Gray was frantically pushing through the bond towards him, his terror slowly beginning to wane as he realised that he wasn’t going to be abandoned there and then. “Not unless…” _You mean it,_ Gray knew what he hadn’t said, and he hated the fact that he had been the one to put the though in the Dragon-slayer’s head.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured, pressing his lips into pink hair, content to hold onto Natsu as the Dragon-slayer slowly calmed in his arms. Using the quiet to try and consider what Natsu had told him, but while he was trying to be as calm as he could, every time he tried to accept what his mate had been willing to do for him and because of him, a wild panic threatened to take over him.

_I can’t lose him…_

    Rationally he knew that battles like the one that they’d just endured was unusual even for their guild. But Fairy Tail, and their team in particular had spectacularly bad luck when it came to finding themselves in especially dangerous situations, seeming to find them around every corner at times, and he knew that more than once they had come close to losing or worse. It had never worried him beyond the immediate situation, but now…could he walk willingly into those situations when he knew that if anything happened to him, then Natsu would die with him if things went really wrong? But, then if he hesitated because he was worried about what Natsu, and one of their friends or family paid the price for it, would he be able to live with himself? Yet what else could they do? They were mages and Fairy Tail was their family, their home, and he knew that neither of them would hesitate to protect that, and that there was no way either one of them could turn their back on their current life.

“Gray.” He glanced down at the soft murmur, making a low noise in the back of his throat as he realised that Natsu wasn’t looking at him, but staring off at some distant point. “I don’t w-want this to change things. I just want everything to back to normal when we go home.” Gray didn’t know what to say, stunned by the plea, and wondering if Natsu actually thought it would actually be that easy for them to go back to how things had been before this. But then he blinked, taking stock of the feelings coming through the bond. There was fear and grief, and a strain that couldn’t be put into words, and he sighed as he realised that Natsu was fully aware that it wouldn’t be as simple as that.

“I…” He hesitated, unsure if he could agree to that, even if they both knew deep down it wouldn’t be that easy. Could he put aside this new knowledge and continue as though nothing had changed? He wanted to. He wanted to forget all about this, but he knew that wasn’t possible. “I can’t promise that,” he admitted eventually, feeling the anguish that greeted his words, and hurrying to explain before the Dragon-slayer could work himself into a state once more. “I can’t promise that right now, it’s too soon and too raw. However, I know what you mean and what you’re asking, and you’re right, we can’t let this change things, and I don’t want to let change things. So, I promise to try.” He hoped that would be enough for now, as there was no way he could promise anything more when his thoughts and feelings on the situation were still in such a disarray, and he waited anxiously as Natsu seemed to consider his words.

“Okay,” Natsu murmured finally, after several minutes of awkward silence had trickled past, and Gray slumped, holding Natsu tight in his relief. He didn’t need the feelings coming through the bond to know that Natsu wasn’t happy with the situation, or what he had said, but that for now at least he was willing to wait for Gray and for now that was enough.

 


End file.
